Iron Fist
by Gman91
Summary: The story takes place in an alternative world where pokemon can talk with humans and pokemon battles are mostly forgotten. A new form of combat has taken it's place, Skeleton Clashes. With a new piece of technology humans can use pokemon moves and then battle each other. Zan is a teenage boy and one of these Skeleton Clashers. On his way to Sunnyshore where adventure will unfold.
1. Canalave Arc: Skeletons and Trainers

"Alright here we go, Flame Charge!" shouted a determined young male. Flames erupted from the center of his chest and spread across body. From his red shirt and black tie, down his long legs and even all the way up to his short, brown hair. His sharp, teal eyes were still visible behind the bright red flames. Nothing was burning as the man charged forward a few steps. A strenuous look developed on his face quickly, followed by the flames dispersing. "Ow ow ow" he whimpered, shaking his limps in pain.

"You're going it all wrong" criticized a Pignite from the side. He hastily waddled forward towards the human with his hands raised in the air. "Your back was slouched too much, your knees weren't bent enough and you moved too slow. You have to cover more distance faster so you can reach your opponent quicker. Because the longer you hold that move, as you experienced, the fire will get to your body and it will hurt. This move is a lot different than Fire Punch. Don't be such an idiot Zan." The man was listening closely and taking the information in.

"I get the pace thing but how pose affects the move makes no sense. And don't call me an idiot fat pig" Zan teased with his tongue out.

"The right pose allows the flames to evenly spread across your body. Depending on how you are positioned flames will bunch up in one area and so you will feel the burn faster" the pokemon explained intelligently. He then smacked Zan hard on his back. "Don't call me a fat pig. Show your manners, I am your master." Pignite put both paws on his hips and tried to stand tall. Zan just scoffed and looked down on his shorter companion.

"Oh, does the wittle master wanna go back into his wittle ball" joked the brunette as he waved the red and white device in front of Pignite's face. Pignite didn't say anything, he just lightly punched Zan's knee. The human retaliated by giving the fire type a quick noogie.

"Wow is that a Memory Skeleton?" asked a younger male from across the field that the two heroes were training in. Zan and his Pignite immediately turned towards the direction of the voice with wide surprised voice. It was the first time anyone had mentioned Zan's suit since they returned to town. This suit was a skinny metal frame that was worn outside of his clothes. It spread across all of his fingers to his forearms then the shoulders and down his spine to the outside of his legs. From the shoulders it also went up on both sides of his neck up to his temple and two parts even split out and stopped at the edges of his mouth. It was hard to notice but in the middle of the metal stripes was a light blue stipe spreading across the entire frame.

"Yes it is. Are you a fan of Skeleton Clashes?" questioned Zan with a proud look on his face. The boy approached the two closer as Pignite gave another quick jab to Zan's knee and acted like nothing happened.

"Not a fan really I just haven't seen one for a while so it surprised me" the boy replied and he was now right next to the group.

"Why haven't you seen one for a while, don't tell me Skeleton Clashes are dying out?" Pignite asked.

"No no. I mean Canalave was never a big city for Skeleton Clashing. We have the Master of Canalave who occasionally hosts a tournament and that's about it. But I've just been so involved in the pokemon battling scene that I've been away from anything skeleton clash." The boy was staring at the skeleton with awe. "This one looks a little different, what model is it?"

"Wait, pokemon battling?" Pignite interrupted with interest. Zan quickly reached over and covered Pignite's mouth.

"This is a custom model I designed myself. The blue strip is my own special design added for visual flare. But there are several big changes. There is only one bar on my back instead of the regular two because two is too stiff and limits my movements. Then there isn't a chest bar. The chest bar adds more defense but I don't find it necessary. Without that piece using up energy more energy flows to the arms giving me more offensive punches. This model I call Make" Zan explained with his pride overflowing as he showed off his handiwork. He then took his mouth off of Pignite's face and the pokemon gasped for breath. "With that out of the way. Pokemon battling?" Both the human and the trainer seemed very interested in this term that was unknown to them. The young boy just seemed completely shocked.

"You two don't know about pokemon battling? What, have you been on an remote island for the past six months?"

"Actually" Pignite started.

"Actually yes we have. An island farther east than Iron Island" interrupted Zan. Pignite blew a shot of embers at the human's face but Zan just smiled and carried on. "We were there doing training at my sister's place there, getting ready for the next Great Legendary Skeleton Clash Tournament. Today is our first day back to modern society."

"Oh I see. Well then I'll do you a favor and fill you in. Pokemon battling used to be big back in the day. The entire world practically revolved around it. Not just Sinnoh either, all the regions. But then with the increase of technology the Skeleton Clashes become big. Allowing trainers to actually fight for themselves. But in these last few months there has been a sudden increase in pokemon battles. There are no leagues or official tournaments for it yet. Just underground battles. For now."

"Hmm interesting. Thanks but that all seems a bit silly. Pokemon fighting for themselves, they wouldn't want tha…." Zan's words came to a halt as he noticed his trusty Pignite in a trance almost. His eyes were wide and he seemed to be lost in daydreams. There was a smile on his face. "Hey Boris, are you alright?" Hearing his name Boris snapped out of his trance and immediately looked towards Zan with a child-like expression.

"Hey Zan, can we do a pokemon battle? Pretty please." Zan was taken aback by his friends polite behavior, it wasn't like the fat pig. But with the pokemon's manners and his adorable expression Zan couldn't say no.

"A-al-alright. I guess if that's what you really want." Boris jumped up and fist pumped with excitement.

"Oh buy you're still an idiot."

"Yeah whatever Porky."

"The next set of battles is going to be tomorrow night at the most south dock after midnight. You can just show up, but keep this information on the download. If there is too big of a crowd we can't properly conduct the event. I need to go now. Later skeleton dude." The boy turned and walked the way he came. Zan continued to stand there unsurely as his partner did a little happy dance, jabbing his paws in the air.

"I want you and the others to be happy, I really do. So if pokemon battles make you happy then alright. We can stop by the library to find some books about pokemon battles to properly inform ourselves. But, I still want to stop by the Bartrin Mansion later today and challenge the master. Alright?" wondered Zan.

"Yeah that's fine. Don't get me wrong, as much as I like the idea of testing my own skills in battle, I still helped train you so I want to see if my training paid off. So I'm totally fine with that plan you idiot why wouldn't I be." Zan's uneasiness was relieved a bit and he smiled more naturally.

A man in his twenties sat on the roof to a four story mansion. The wind blew around his long, dark blonde hair. He sat resting his head in his hands and looked rather emotionless. He was staring off into the sky but something caught his attention below. An old man and a woman were approaching the mansion doors. This woman had smooth sky blue hair and her until body was dressed in fancy silk clothing. Something metal on her outfit gleamed in the sunlight. She walked as if she was walking on air.

"Hmph, so Lady Moore shows up. To see my father no doubt. Everyone comes for my father." With his left hand he gripped tightly onto the Memory Skeleton part on his right forearm.


	2. Canalave Arc: Vs the Bartrin Masters

Chapter 2: Vs the Bartrin Masters

Zan and Boris walked out of the Canalave Library accompanied by an Espeon. Boris seemed very content and wore a happy smile as they marched down south.

"Hey Zan did you know that the Bartrin Mansion was formerly the Canalave City Gym?" questioned the Espeon in an elderly female voice.

"Actually I did not. But that makes sense. Since the Masters are the Skeleton Clash equivalent to the gym leaders, right?" Zan replied.

"Of course you didn't know that because you're just a giant idiot" insulted Boris with his tongue out. Zan lightly shoved his pokemon partner.

"Shut up, you didn't know anything about pokemon battles either before we reached the library" Zan retorted.

"You two will never grow up will you" commented the Espeon. "We were all clueless and now we are all a bit informed thanks to the library.

"Well all of us except Augment. He got bored reading rather quickly and returned to his ball. Nala, let's try to inform him later. I don't want to use someone in a pokebattle who is clueless. And you know Boris can't explain things worth a dam."

"Or tell stories for that matter" chimed in Nala the Espeon with a smug look.

"Yeah that too, he starts telling you a story, then get distracted and moves on to another story and then he just draws a blank on either story and sit there awkwardly" Zan continued to tease.

"Or he will mix up both stories into one" added Nala. Boris was unhappily grumbling under his breath and he marched forward ahead of the other two.

"I hope you lose vs the Canalave Master so I have something to make fun of you for" the upset pig informed his trainer. Zan just laughed knowing his pokemon was never mad.

"Even if I don't you will still love me."

"Yes but I love you more when I can make fun of you." The two friends stopped at the same time as they noticed their companion had been left behind. The espeon was staring out into the sea.

"It's amazing to think the world is so big that we just came from a place that we can't even see right now. The scope of the world is just amazing. And the ocean, it's just so calming yet mystical" she said aloud. Boris and Zan shared glances before shrugging their shoulders at each other.

"If you like this ocean just wait until we reach Sunnyshore. It'll blow your hypothetical socks off. Granted, it'll be a while before we get there. But it's our next stop" Zan informed. He scratched his face awkwardly because he was a bit unsure how to word what was coming out of his mouth. Nala closed her eyes briefly and smiled.

"I look forward to it. That is where we will be meeting your mother that we have heard so much about?" The espeon turned to catch up with the duo.

"Yep that is where she lives and she is the sole reason we are trekking to Sunnyshore. Well and to pick up more fighting experience along the way. It'll be Nala and Augment's first time meeting her. Boris probably barely remembers her. He was only a Tepig at the time."

"I remember her, kind of. But we can worry about that later. Our destination right now is the Bartrin Mansion. Where my dumb pupil will test his fists against Clive Bartrin in an all out Skeleton Clash."

"Fifteeen poke on Bartrin" bet Nala. Boris stomped the floor in frustration.

"Dam, beat me to it" mumbled the pignite.

Inside a large and fancy mansion was the blue haired Lady Moore. A loose, grey robe was covering her body. Though on her hands and face were the metal strips of a Memory Skeleton. The parts near her mouth and fingers were reinforced which meant more power were focused on those areas. With her were two butlers and the group was led by the Master, Clive Bartrin. He was cloaked in fine, black silks that were lined with gold threads. His grey hair was balding but his goatee was thick. He smelled like very expensive cologne. He too had a memory skeleton though it was completely under his clothes.

"And that, Lady Moore, is the entire first floor. Shall we proceed with the tour of the next floor?" asked Clive in a deep voice. The young lady yawned without covering her mouth. She then rolled her eyes.

"Dude I already told you, I'm not interested in your mansion. I came here for a battle" she told him staring at the ceiling.

"And I told you I'm not interested in a battle with you. Now let us proceed to the next floor" the old man insisted, taking steps forward. Lady Moore swiftly turned her back to him.

"Whatever, I'm going outside to take a smoke." The master shook his head in disappointed and continued onto the second floor with his workers. "Man what is his problem" Lady Moore mumbled. "He is so dam arrogant; acting like a battle with me is a waste of his time. Then he is just an ass trying to flirt with me afterwards. He is so old. But the worst part is he is so boring. I could never date someone like that." She pulled a cigarette out of her right sleeve and placed it in the tip of her lips. The large wooden doors of the mansion were insight as she retrieved a match also from her sleeve and kept it inhand. With an angry push she forced the doors open. Right before her eyes was a young man accompanied by a pignite and an espeon. Lady Moore paid no attention to this male and dipped off to the porch on the left. She leaned against the metal railing and let her match again her Memory Skeleton. The flame from the match lit her cigarette and she wasting no time getting into the nicotine. Zan stopped at the three stairs leading up the mansion door and turned towards the lady. She was extremely pretty despite having an ugly habit. Zan was most captivated by her grey-blue eyes. "Did you want something?" she asked, annoyed.

"I want to challenge Master Bartrin, can you tell me where I can find him?" Zan asked eagerly, slamming his fists together. Lady Moore scoffed as she took another puff from the cigarette.

"It doesn't matter where he is. He won't fight you" she replied, waving them off with her cigarette hand. Nala turned to leave but Zan and Boris stayed and stomped their feet in anger.

"What? He has to fight me, he is the master!" Zan argued. Lady Moore smirked. This man was intriguing her with his innocence. It was calming, or maybe it was just the nicotine calming her.

"By the rules he does not have to accept any challenges. Because there are no rules about masters. They don't really matter; there is no reward by beating them besides bragging rights and a test of strength. Besides being issued by the Skeleton Clash League the masters don't really have any ties to the league" the blue haired woman explained with heavy hand motions. Zan and Boris dropped their heads together in disappointment. This knowledge was new to both of them.

"Balls" Zan muttered.

"Why do you want to fight him so badly?" Lady Moore smiled slightly as she flipped her hair. Her smile was not a flirtatious smile though. It was a smile because she knew she about to get a chance to insult this guy or crush his dreams.

"I just spent the last six months training, but that's all it was, training. I want to know how it all paid off, where my power level stands right now. And the best way to do that is to battle someone who is relatively strong." Zan stood tall and proud.

"I'm encouraging him to fight the master so that when he loses I'll be able to make fun of him for it" Boris piped in.

"No matter how much training you do you would still lose to Master Bartrin. Not because of you though, but because of your memory skeleton. You've taken away so much of the defense sections on it. You don't win a match on power and speed alone. You win it on intelligence and you won't have much time to use your intelligence when you fall in a few hits." She took another hit from her cigarette happy to have gotten her insult in.

"So quick to insult when you know nothing about my abilities in combat. I know your type, you do that because you don't have confidence in yourself so you downplay others" retaliated Zan with his own smirk.

"Let's not get into this, I have no desire to fight you, which is what this topic will lead to." Boris leaned close to Zan with his paw by his mouth.

"But didn't she start it?" whispered the pokemon. Zan just shrugged, he wasn't exactly sure what to make of this woman. Before he could reply the sounds of doors opening came from above. There was a balcony on every floor all at the same spot vertically, above the front doors. The opening doors came from the second floor balcony and out came Master Clive Bartrin with only one of his butlers this time. He placed his forearms on the railing and looked down below.

"And here comes the pompous ass master" quietly sassed Lady Moore but Zan could hear her clearly. He had no idea what the master looked like but that comment was all the confrontation he needed.

"Clive Bartrin, I came here to battle you" Zan shouted. Nala walked forward and came to her master's side, smiling with excitement. Pignite had the same expression though his face looked a bit goofier.

"I decline" the older man replied nonchalantly. "Now my dear Lady Moore will you please join me up here?" Lady Moore sneered and took the final drag of her cigarette. She cursed that it was over and flicked the butt away.

"I was told that you would say that. But really, I insist" interrupted Zan and both of his fists lit on fire. Clive rolled his eyes.

"This pesky guy is getting in the way." Master Bartrin raised his right hand into the air and wiggled his fingers. "Son!" he called out. As the words barely left his mouth someone jumped from the roof and slide down the walls. The slide caused no damage to the building and was done very quickly. When this figured was close to the ground he pushed off the wall and towards Zan, his long blonde hair flowing behind him. He punched Zan's stomach with his right hand and continued past the brunette. Zan gasped in pain. "If you can beat my son, then maybe I will fight you. In the meantime, Lady Moore will you please come up here now?"

"No thanks old man, I like the view from down here" the blue haired woman responded. She leaned against the railing more as to get closer to the action. The stun of the surprise attack had worn off of Zan. His eyes opened wide and he turned around to face his attacker.

"Boris, Nala give me room!" he demanded. The two pokemon scurried off the right but didn't take their eyes of the battle. "A surprise attack, that sure is low. But I guess you might need it. The no good son of Clive Bartrin. I've heard plenty about you before my hiatus, and none of it was positive. The blonde haired son already had an angry look which just intensified. He charged forward again but this time his arms lagged behind the rest of his body. "Nitro Charge!" Zan bent his knees, leaned forward and fire ignited on his body. He darted forward to clash with his opponent. The Bartrin boy lead with his shoulder when Zan got close and his whole body gained a metallic shine.

"Heavy Slam!" When the two males met Zan was instantly shoved backwards but managed to stay on his feet as he skid. The blonde had pretty much stopped in place after the collision. "My name is Wes, Wes Bartrin. When the no good son beats you, what does that make you, worse good than the no good?" His deep voice was heavily tinted with annoyance and his eyes were full of peer anger.

"For the love of Arceus Zan beat some grammar into this fool" insisted Nala still as stoic as can be. Wes had darted off again, this time with a short, black blade extending from his right hand fingers. Zan got his footing together and readied a fire punch in his right hand. He was on the ready and attacked first but Wes easily ducked under the punch and slashed Zan across the chest. Neither his body nor clothes were cut though. That was the power of the memory skeletons, it allowed the user to feel pain without any major injuries. Before the brunette could respond Wes slashed at him again and then a third time.

"What's the matter, fire and psychic moves aren't enough to get you out of this situation" the attacked teased as he took a quick jump back and prepared a powerful slash. Zan gathered his focus and clapped his hands sending a gust of wind that pushed Wes back a few feet.

"You can think Augment the Starly for that move" Zan retorted with a cocky smirk. Even though he was already badly beat up. He held his tongue about any psychic moves because he actually didn't know any of Espeon's moves yet but didn't want to reveal that to his opponent. Psychic moves required a lot of mind power which wasn't exactly Zan's strong suit. Nala did evolve only two months ago. [i]"Alright if his primary types are steel and dark that means his ranged game should be pretty weak, that is where I'll get him."[/i] Now that Zan had a good distance between him and Wes he took in a deep breath. "Flamethrower!" he yelled as he exhaled a blast of fire. Though the fire didn't actually come from his mouth, it came from the ends of the two metal pieces near his mouth. Wes leaned forward and put his head down as it grew a metallic covering. The man charged forward straight into the flames recklessly. He did take damage from them but was able to push through them. Zan kept still and put more power into the attack hoping he could halt Wes' progress. But his efforts were useless as Wes approached Zan and rammed into his face with a strong Iron Head. Zan grabbed his nose which was now bleeding, as he stumbled backwards. The more damage a memory skeleton took without having a proper time to recharge, the lower its protection abilities were. Zan was completely exhausted now while Wes was just breaking a sweat.

"And that is game" bragged Wes who was now enjoying himself.

"I can still fight" Zan replied between heavy breaths.

"Dude your nose is bleeding which means your defenses are down. If we keep going you're going to risk injury. Which is fine for me. But even if we do keep going you don't have any chance of winning now. You can probably only last three more hits at max and you've barely touched me. So you would have to actually land a good shot on me first, and then get a few more in. Here I'll even let you have a free shot right now to show you how futile continuing this fight is. Wes placed his hands behind his back and widened his stance. Clive Bartrin was uninterested in the fight and he was staring at Lady Moore the whole time. Lady Moore was still focused on the fight and more intrigued than ever. She was curious to see how someone who seemed honorable and fair would react to a free attack. Boris was nervously biting his fingers while Nala just remained stoic. Zan was determined as ever as he trudged forward slowly. His right fist was full of fire.

"If you insist, then it's not dirty." He halted in front of Wes and looked the man right into his forest green eyes. Wes stared back, both glances were cold. Zan's left foot slide forward and his right fist cocked back. He exhaled and his right foot came forward which triggered his fist to shoot like a rocket. Zan was too exhausted to shout out the name of the attack. The flaming fist collided straight into Wes's face and sent the blonde man sailing backwards. Wes landed a few feet back, on his side completely unconscious. Lady Moore gasped and Zan's pokemon looked smugly proud. Clive noticed his son was out for the count so suddenly and his eyebrows peaked in slight interest. The exhausted Zan turned towards the mansion and with a shaky hand pointed up at Master Clive Bartrin. "Alright, it's your turn now."


	3. Canalave Arc: Mysterious Ladies

Thank you for your comment, I really appreciate it. I'm actually already to chapter 5, I have just been posting them on another site and totally forgot about this site, even though I've posted two other stories here before. So now I'm just trying to put one here once a day to catch this website up.

I have been doing previews for the next chapter at the end of my chapters, for this story and my previous two stories. Yet I am not even sure why, I have been removing them when I add them on this website. So I've decided to include the previews again, starting with the chapter.

Lastly, there was actually about a two month gap between chapter 2 and this one, in my writing not in the story. So I had to use this chapter to get accustomed to the characters again which if this chapter feels off that is why. Anyway I will hush up now and let you enjoy.

* * *

**Chapter 3: The Mysterious Ladies**

Zan continued to stare down Clive Bartrin at the Bartrin Mansion. Clive's son Wes lay there unconscious with a large mark on his face. Zan was breathing very heavily, barely unable to stand. Though his eyes were fierce and as confident as ever. Boris was dancing behind him and Espeon was smug, both of them showing their confidence in their trainer. Zan stumbled forward but was able to catch himself after the fourth step. He raised a shaky finger up and pointed it straight at the old man on the balcony.

"Come on old man, come down here and fight!" Zan roared as he stumbled forward again. Clive just laughed as he turned his side to Zan as an insult.

"You're amusing but it wouldn't be a fight. One push and it'd be game over. That is hardly worth the effort of coming down there. Now get off my property" ordered Clive, taking a step towards the glass door.

"Fight me in his place!" Lady Moore shouted out. She had moved from her place on the porch to a spot next to Zan so that she could see Clive more clearly and vice versa. Her blue eyes looked as determined as Zan's yet she had a hint of anger in her look. Again the older man just laughed, a deep hearty laugh. Yet his mighty laugh was insulting.

"Or I have an idea. I could fight neither of you. Because both would be a waste. Defeating my failure of a son proves nothing. And no woman will ever be able to fight on par with a man. Now again, I'll be choosing the option of fighting neither of you" he snidely informed before entering back into his mansion. He snapped his fingers and the butlers closed the door behind him. Lady Moore was overflowing with anger now and she gritted her teeth as well as clenched her fists. The gritting of her teeth wasn't just a meaningless act though, the motion sent ice out of the skeleton pieces near her mouth. The spurt of ice was small but it collided against the door that Clive had left through, freezing over it. She then spun around, wrapped her fingers around Zan and yanked his body as she stormed off. He stumbled to keep up with her fast pace as well as just keeping his exhausted legs from falling off.

"Wait what?" the boy questioned, completely confused of the woman's actions. This didn't stop Lady Moore though and Zan's pokemon began to follow the duo.

"You're injured after a victory so I'm taking you to a hospital" she said, yanking Zan's arm around more, irritation still in her voice. Boris couldn't help but giggle at the further misery of his owner. The male just sighed, knowing there wasn't anything he could do. He just tried to make sure that he didn't fall on his face.

* * *

The human couple along with Boris sat in a white room. Well Lady Moore and Boris sat on chairs, Zan was laying down on his back. Nala had wanted to return to her ball to take a rest of her own. Their white room was in the Canalave Pokecenter first floor. The front area of the first floor was still for healing pokemon like in the past. But now the back of Pokecenter's have been drastically expanded to make room for a human hospital. The second floor was still a hotel. Zan wasn't hooked up to any machines, just bandaged with ice packs. All he needed was a rest though he would be swore for a while. Those were common repercussions of a Skeleton Clash. Lady Moore didn't seem very happy to be there but she wasn't leaving and Zan wasn't trying to get her to stay. Her fists were still clenched though, her anger wasn't easy to disperse. They hadn't said anything since Zan was put in this room.

"That was a pretty amazing battle admittedly. That finishing blow was really lucky" Lady Moore broke the silent. She had a cigarette perched in her mouth but she couldn't lit it for obvious reasons.

"That wasn't luck. That was Zan's iron fist of determination!" Boris exclaimed, now boasting about his trainer. "This loser might be a lot of things but his strong determination is admirable. He was determined to win and saw the free hit would be his only chance, so he was determined to end it with that one punch. And he did." The pig had his arms crossed, nodding after every sentence.

"Oh, I see. Well, this determination of yours, it has intrigued me. Not only is it interesting to watch, and even though I hate watching, but this strong determination should find you strong opponents. Which I can then fight eventually. You'd be surprised how hard it is to find an opponent. Once people hear my name they go scampering off. But if I keep meeting strong people through you, eventually I'll get people to battle me. I guess it's kind of silly now that I say it out loud. But nevertheless it is happening!" the blue haired woman rambled. Her cheeks were slightly red. Zan giggled slightly but stopped because it hurt.

"Alright, we can travel together" Zan replied wincing. His stomach was bruised badly enough that it even hurt to speak.

"Well good, let us leave tonight then, no reason to waste around in this crap-shoot of a city." Lady Moore kicked at the floor. Zan grimaced again but this time not from a pain.

"Er, I have to do something tonight. We can leave first thing tomorrow though" he nervously explained. This woman had previously shown that she was scary when she didn't get what she wanted, Zan didn't want to have to witness that aimed at him.

"Hmph alright, hot date tonight?" She wasn't exactly happy but the woman didn't seem to be boiling with anger either.

"It's a private issue. Even though we are travel buddies now we still just met today, so we should still be allowed some privacy."

"Fine but I'm going to pull that card on you later."

"Fair enough." The room was filled with silence again. Boris had his head down and he was twiddling his stubby fingers together. "And if you ever want to, I'll be happy to fight you anytime." The injured boy gave a sweet smile which got the woman to smile back.

"Thanks I guess, but even with your win against the Bartrin boy I can still beat you" she said hastily.

"You better not lose Zan! I would be so ashamed to see my fire moves lose to someone who uses ice moves" Boris chimed in.

"Don't worry, I won't, my iron determination won't let me! Anyway speculation won't do us any good. Since we are going to travel together, I think I should let you know my real name so you can choose what to call me from there. I am actually called Zanthropolis Amyr."

"Yeah I think I'll stick to Zan. Short and sweet, and fast, that's the way I do things."

"Alright that works fine, everyone else calls me Zan, even my parents." Silence dawned over the group again and Boris glanced at both participants awkwardly. He was contracting his hands now. Even Zan was now awkwardly twiddling his fingers. The lovely Lady Moore was just leaning back in her seat looking at the ceiling. "So, you're not going to tell me you're real name?"

"You already know my name. I am Lady Moore"

"Lady what Moore though?"

"Lady isn't a title it's my first name asshole." There was a pause on Zan's end now, he and Boris both had dropped jaws.

"…Your first name is Lady?"

"Yeah and if you make fun of it I'll Ice Shard your ass, Zanthropolis."

"No no, it's a lovely name for a uh, lady." Boris had to giggle at Zan's remark. His giggle got him the icy stare of death. Boris slowly learned towards Zan's direction.

"Hey Zan, are you sure it's safe to travel with this woman? She scares me."

"It'll be fine. Besides, maybe she will teach you some respect."

"I hate you."

"Love you too buddy."

* * *

Over in the neighboring city of Jubilife, in a fancy room sat a young teenage female. Her orange-brown hair dangled against her chin as she looked over some papers in front of her. Someone resembling a butler came into the room, though he was dressed very casual. Only his white gloves and his stance were that of a butler.

"How is the report Miss Sky?" he asked. He had a thick accent, it was very fancy.

"Our fellow master in the neighbor city of Canalave has barely done any battles lately" the young woman replied, sighing.

"Are you sure he hasn't just not been getting challenges" the butler questioned back, still staying on the far side of the room. Sky carelessly flung the reports forward and twisted in her seat to face the butler. Her knees were now crammed in her face and her back was on the arm of a chair, but she seemed perfectly comfortable.

"Not a chance, you know me, I have spies watching every master. My spy said that Clive Bartrin declined two requests today alone, even after one of the fighters defeated his son. It's time for me to go pay Clive a visit" she complained, eyes on the ceiling now.

"And do what exactly?"

"Beat the crap out of him, whether he agrees to fight me or not. We used to be on even par but now that he hasn't been fighting for a while he is missing out on experience that I have been getting. I have no doubt in my mind I can easily dispose of him now. And maybe that will kick start him to start taking battles again. Since the league won't start requiring a certain amount of battles for masters. I will not let this old man tarnish the name of the Masters. Prepare a travel bag for me, we leave tonight."

* * *

The time for Zan's very first pokemon battle has come. But just how will someone with no experience against other opponents fare? Will he make a name for himself in the underground scene or get completely embarrassed? And the crew will soon make their way out of the city just as this Miss Sky is making her way into the city. Things are heating up as the Jubilife approaches coming to a close. All on the next [b][u] Iron Fist: Burning Passions and New Desires[/b][/u]


	4. Canalave Arc: Burning Passions

Whenever I don't write a story with traditional pokebattles, then it never goes very long, so I had to fit them into the plot. Even though right now I want to write Skeleton Clash battles more, which is why this chapter is shorter than the rest. Still I hope this is interesting enough. At the very least these pokebattles offer a change of pace.

And to anyone else reading, just remember feel free to say anything in your comment. If you want to post your theories about future events, thoughts about characters, go ahead, I welcome it actually. It would be fun to read. And also if you have anything you want me to include in this fic, like a certain fight, or give a character a certain pokemon, while I might not make it happen, I will consider it, so feel free to request events to happen.

I think that is all to say for this chapter, happy reading.

* * *

**Chapter 4: Burning Passions and New Desires**

The dark night sky gave the clouds a black tint. There weren't many stars in the sky and the moon seemed to be hiding as well. The sky might've been black but the same could not be said for the ground in Canalave. The docks were being lit up my multi colored flashes. There were a large amount of ocean blue flashes. There were also several lanterns around the docks. The dock lights helped show what was going on. Dozens of people were gathered around as two people shouted attacks at a pokemon. This was Canalave's secret pokemon battle session. Amongst the crowd of dozens was Zan who was wearing a thick, black coat with white cuffs. This jacket had buttons and a bulge between two of the buttons. Two little white eyes and a small orange beak peaked out of the space between the buttons.

"Is it our turn yet?" whispered Augment the Starly loudly. A hand reached down and shoved the orange beak back into the coat.

"Not yet, and why do you ask. You have eyes, you can see. The battle between a Buizel and a Gastrodon is still going on" Zan whispered back. Augment pecked at Zan's hand before he could get it away. Zan then flicked Augment's forehead while keeping his eyes on the battle. Though he wasn't really watching it. His mind was lost thinking about his upcoming pokemon battle. There were only a few people in the crowd that hadn't got to fight yet, which meant Zan's chance would be coming up very soon. He wished to have Pignite out so they could share in the excitement but there was a rule that you could only have a pokemon out when you were battling. Still, Zan hated to be alone.

Mud flew through the air as did the small Buizel. When it landed it's eyes were spiraled out and he was completely unconscious.

"Buizel is unable to battle, Mugarun and his Gastrodon win" announced a blue haired girl who was acting ref. The victor celebrated but the only clapping and celebrating from the audience came from Zan himself. He quickly came to a stop when he noticed no one else was chiming in. This behavior had happened after every battle so far. Zan had gotten weird looks that were getting more angry every time he did it. No one here cared about anyone else, only themselves. "Alright for the best battle, I think it's time for Mr. Ren Sho to get his battle in." The ref pointed at a tall man with long, slicked back black hair. He didn't show emotion that he was picked to battle. He just trudged up towards the ref. "And let's have him fight, the annoying clapping guy" she pointed to Zan. Zan fist pumped as he skipped through the crowd towards the ref, pokeball already in hand. "You guys should know the rules by now, fight!" The ref back stepped and fit into the crowd.

"I've been waiting all night for this, it's our time to shine, go Boris!" Zan enthusiastically shouted, slamming the pokeball on the ground. In a display of orange flames, Boris the Pignite appeared.

"You better not fail me shitty trainer" he roared. Boris was stretching his legs and arms since he wasn't used to being in a pokeball.

"You don't have to be worrying about me, you can do plenty of failing on your own fat pig" Zan retorted with a smirk.

"Let's wreck them" Pignite replied in a quieter tone, dawning a smirk as well. Ren didn't seem amused by his opponents behavior. Unemotionally he pressed the button on a great ball on his belt. The red light made the form of a Seviper.

"Seviper, smog" the blackette lifelessly ordered.

"Yes sir" replied the snake in a feminine voice. She raised up her body so her head was up high before releasing a stream of purple gases.

"Alright Boris, counter with Ember!" commanded Zan. Orange flames flew out of Boris' nose and fought with the purple poison. The two attacks cancelled each other out, purple and orange particles just fluttered about.

"Flamethrower." Seviper's mouth widened again and a powerful flow of red fire came out.

"Ember counter again!" Boris released orange flames which were smaller than Seviper's. The attacks didn't battle this time, the flamethrower blew past the ember and scorched Boris. He quickly raised up an arm to shield his eyes from the flames. A few moments later he lowered his stubby arm to see again and Seviper was right in his face, fangs dripping in purple ooze. Zan wasn't used to having to shout out an order in battle so he hesistated, thinking Boris would just act on his own. But the pig didn't in time and the snake's purple teeth sunk into Boris' arm. Lines of purple spread out from the area of the bite, covering Boris' whole body in seconds. He yelped out in pain even more as the purple surged brightly. The lines then faded but they were still there. Seviper had removed it's teeth but was still in Boris' face.

"Boris, use Gyro Ball now!" The spirit was still in Zan's voice yet it seemed to be gone from Boris' body. Still the pig pokemon stood on one foot then with his arms made a movement that spun him around. During the spinning his body took on a metallic coating as he rammed towards Seviper.

"Protect." Without even blinking Seviper summoned a blue-green shield that stopped Pignite's spinning in its tracks. In the pause after his attack was blocked the poison surged through Pignite's body again. As he shrieked Zan and Augment cringed.

"Don't give up Boris, I believe in you. Don't let this smug bastard do you in!" cheered Zan. But his cheers were in vain as Boris dropped to the ground unconscious. Zan ran over to his pokemon and Ron returned Seviper. "Boris!" he screamed, sliding on his knees to land next to his pokemon.

"Truly pathetic, not even worth my time" insulted Ro Sho with his back turned to Zan. This revealed that his hair actually traveled all the way down to his waste.

"Hey, it was my first pokemon battle ever, same with Boris" defended Zan. Anger was sprouting in his voice.

"So? Many people win on their first battle, people with actual talent. Then again, I shouldn't have expected anything good out of someone who wears a skeleton." The tall man started to walk away.

"I'm not giving up on this. I desire to be good at pokemon battles now. And most of all, I desire to beat the crap out of you. I will get stronger, then I will return and crush you!" The crowd broke up in laughter and Ro Sho continued to walk away. Zan didn't care to stay there anymore either, he had watched enough battles for a day. As he was leaving with Boris back in his ball he could still hear the laughter.

"Oi, we are going to come back here in the future right? I can't stand letting them have this laughter" asked Augment after Zan had greatly distanced himself from the docks.

"You bet, we will get the last laugh, for sure!"

* * *

With the pokemon battle over, Zan is done with Canalave. But Canalave is not done with him. Something unexpected will happen before he and Lady Moore can move on. Jubilife's Skeleton Master Sky reaches the enters Canalave and what happens after that will be, shocking. All on the next** Iron Fist: A Master Canalave Finale**


	5. Canalave Arc: A Master Finale

I kind of wanted to have Augment do that battle to make up for him not appearing the first three chapters. But Boris had to do it, it is the only choice that fit Zan.

As always, feel free to say anything, I like comments regarding the story.

* * *

**Chapter 5: A Master Canalave Finale**

"Wake up fat-face!" exclaimed Lady Moore as water fell on the sleeping Zan's face. There was no bucket around though. The splash of the water reached Boris who was asleep on his stomach at the foot of the bed. The fire type shot up like a canon, hitting his head on the white ceiling of the hotel room. He landed sprawled out on his stomach, fully awake now. There were dark bags under his eyes.

"You're an evil woman. If you had were a pokemon your typing would be Demon/Hag" muttered the pig. Zan had also been shocked awake. He sat up rubbing his eyes. His hair was perfectly straight and kept. Lady's hair was also perfectly straight, though she had combed hers. She was completely ready, even had a fully packed backpack on. After a moment of being up Zan picked up his phone that was lying next to him to check the time. His head jolted back and slammed against the wall.

"Holy hell woman, it is six am. The s in six stands for sleeping!"

"The s stands for get up and go!" she argued back. Her glare was ice cold and her voice was menacing. Boris was now sitting up with his paw raised, shaking it around.

"Um actually, get doesn't start with…" The pokemon stopped talking when Lady looked him right in the eyes and froze him from the inside. "Very well, no time like the present right?" He jumped off the bed and cringed. He took a few steps towards the door before falling forward. "Ow" grumbled the injured pig. Zan reached over to the nightstand and grabbed the sole pokeball there.

"Looks like you need more rest, take a load off."Boris was brought back into the pokeball which Zan then tossed over by his backpack. He rubbed his eyes once more and blinked several times. "We are going to have to talk about our leaving times. But fine, I'll let you have this one. I'll meet you downstairs in ten."

"Make it eight!" demanded Lady Moore, walking out of the room. Zan mouthed the word 'what' with his hands thrown in the air. The brunette sighed shook his head and pushed himself out of bed.

Zan took a step out of the Pokecenter with Lady Moore five steps ahead. His pack with full of stuff and his pokeballs were on his belt. Though Augment and Nala were both out. Nala walked beside Zan as Augment flew alongside the beautiful Lady Moore.

"Augment's not safe there" Zan whistled under his breath.

"Wise up Zan, she can't be that scary" reassured Nala, nudged her trainer's leg with her head. Lady Moore turned her head back.

"Hurry the hell up" Lady barked. Nala then glanced up towards Zan.

"Alright, he might die" Nala agreed. Augment was flying around Lady now. He wanted to scope her out and give her his stamp of approval. She didn't seem to pay any mind to him though.

"Stop right there!" shouted a male's voice. The group was almost at the exit of Canalave when a man jumped down from the roof of the Pokemart and landed in front of the group. It was Wes Bartrin. He was dressed in a black cloak now with fur shoulder pads and a shoulder bag stuffed full on his left side. There was a faint purple bruise on his face.

"What do you want Bartrin scum?" Lady barked with a fierce look in her eyes. Wes met her look and kept walking forward.

"I didn't come to talk to you, outta my way" he growled back. Wes walked forward more but she stood right in his way. So the blonde male just pushed Lady Moore out of the way with his shoulder. Murder came over for her eyes. Her raised were raised and placed together as a ball of ice formed between them.

"Lady don't! I want to hear him out" pleaded Zan. But that wasn't enough for the angry woman who slammed her hands down over Wes' head. Wes gave a quick uppercut with a metal coated hand and shattered the ice ball. Still that wasn't enough to stop the furious woman who began another ice attack with her hands. "Nala, use yawn" Zan ordered sighing. The pokemon went ahead and let out a white, bubbly cloud from her mouth. Before Moore could launch her next attack her head slung down and she was fast asleep. Zan darted over to grab her arm before she could fall and Augment helped keep her up by latching onto her head and hovering around. "Her anger is going to be fun to deal with. Nala what have I gotten myself into? Anyway, what do you want?" Zan was actual quite cheerful and didn't have any hostile intentions towards Wes. Wes didn't seem hostile either, though didn't exactly look happy.

"I came here to travel with you" he blurted out. Wes refused to look Zan in the eyes when he said those words.

"Hey Zan, isn't this the guy you beat the crap out of yesterday?" Augment shouted, wings flapping hard to keep Lady Moore up.

"He didn't beat the crap out of me!" Wes yelled back, spit flying. "Anyway, I know you must be hesitant since I was low to attack you like I did. And you don't know me. But I need to get out of this town. I need to get stronger and I can't do it here" he explained. He looked Zan in the eyes this time, his eyes gleamed of honesty.

"Well if you want to travel with me to fight the strong opponents that I would encounter, sorry but the angry dragon over there has already claimed it." The blonde gave one single laugh.

"That is a stupid reason, what a stupid woman. My reason is much better. You wouldn't have won if I didn't give you that free hit but, I still lost. And since you are the winner that means you're more or less stronger. Traveling around with you gives me a goal, a power to strive for. I want the power to take you out in one punch, like you did to me!" Wes exclaimed, slamming his fists together. Zan smirked with a bit of happiness.

"Alright. I like anyone with a goal. We can travel together. It'll be great to have someone else strong to practice with. But she has to come along since I already agreed to travel with her. Just, try to keep the bickering at a minimum. By the way, we never got to actually introduce ourselves. I am Zan from Sunnyshore."

"I'm Wes from this piece of crap town. I like the idea of leaving last names out." The two sealed their agreement with a solid handshake. Zan's arms were actually more muscular than Wes' so his grip was the tighter one. Zan walked over towards Lady Moore to shake her out of her sleep. As he did that a small orange hair lady walked past the group. Her presence got the eye of both Zan and Wes. She had a Golbat in front of her with a red leash tied around its foot and then around her wrist. The leash was completely extended. She was wearing short jean shorts and a tight yellow shirt. Her hair was entirely tied up above her ear line. She didn't look a day over sixteen. Zan leaned over towards his new travel buddy.

"I don't remember seeing her around town before" the brunette commented in a whisper. Though just like Boris, his whispers were fairly loud.

"You idiot don't you know anything? That is Sky Salone, the Skeleton Clash Master of Jubilife. Though what she is doing here beats me."

"Oh, she looks so young. Well whatever she is here for is her business. We are heading to Jubilife anyway, I want to meet her but we can't meet her there. Besides miss angry pants is super impatient so she will wake up and want to be out of this town any second now."

"Fine, we can go." Wes started walking forward but kept looking back curiously.

The destination that Sky was headed for was the Bartrin Mansion. Her faithful Golbat guided her there in no time. Golbat continued to lead her forward towards the front door which Sky proceeded to kick down. One of the butlers, a larger man, came rushing to the sound of the crash. His face was in horror when he saw what happened and Sky standing in the middle of the front hallway.

"What did you do?" he questioned, his voice croaking.

"Sorry, I can't see, I'm blind" she explained sticking her tongue out.

"Oh the old blind excuse, well I know who that is. It is a great pleasure to see you again Miss Sky" said the sultry voice of Clive Bartrin, coming down the stairwell.

"The man of the hour shows up. Well Golbat this is going swimmingly. Alright Clive, we need to fight" Sky blurted. She was still looking up towards the stairwell, Clive was now directly ahead of her.

"You know that is a great idea. I will meet you outside in, never. Goodbye." His arms were crossed firmly. Sky adjusted to face his voice and she slipped off the leash off her wrist. Golbat flew up as high as he could.

"Actually, right here works fine. Spark!" No electricity appeared around her body though, nothing seemed to happen. Sky was able to look at Clive more directly now though.

"I am not wasting my time with you, get out of my house!" the older man shouted, arms still crossed.

"No can do, not until I show you just how weak you've become." Sky placed both tiny fists together and extended her arms out. She took a deep breath and slowly prepared for the attack. Clive gritted his teeth but placed a foot forward, getting ready to dodge. "Zap Canon!" A ball of bright yellow electricity shot out from her fists. The attack was fast and hit Clive square in the stomach before he could dodge.

"The league isn't going to be happy at you for this. But now you've asked for it. Sand Tomb!" Clive got up from the previous attack and clapped his hands together. Swirling sand formed around his hands before shooting out. Wings identical to Golbat's came out of the skeleton pieces on Sky's back.

"Fly" she muttered, jumping up and being carried higher by her wings. She could clearly see what was going on. "You know as well as anyone that the league doesn't give a shit." Once again she clasped her hands forward and shot out the large ball of electricity known as Zap Cannon. She fired this one faster than the last and so it shot of to the side. Clive easily avoided it this time as he dashed forward. He leapt forward with a black aura sword extending from his right arm. She tried to fly back but he slashed right at her gut. He then unleashed a regular punch with his left but it sent her towards the ground. Sky landed on her feet though instead of crashing, her wings helped slow her down. Still the impact was rough on her feet. Clive landed just fine and charged, Night Slash still on his right arm. He had the momentum but then he just stopped. Electricity sprouted from his body. He was a paralyzed. But Sky hadn't made any movements.

"Good ol Zap Canon, trusty move, always setting in paralysis. You really shouldn't have let yourself get hit with it. But you're the one who let me charge it up. Your body isn't the only thing that is dull" she lectured, pointing at Clive. Her wings were now gone and electricity surged throughout her body. The electricity was a bright yellow. "Spark."

"Don't talk down on me woman." Sky charged forward and Clive did as well, with Night Slash still ready. Clive swung at her body but she just blew right past him. Clive was thrown aside and slammed into the hallway wall. He then slide down to a sitting position without the will to fight anymore. The wooden wall had a slight dent to it, but the entire hallway was now messed up. Wallpaper torn and a table broken. Two of Clive's butler rushed in to help him up. Sky's Golbat flew down and dropped the leash on her wrist. She slipped it back on and walked out, appearing completely blind again.

"If you want this mansion to remain intact then you better shape up Clive. Or I'll crush this place just like I crushed you today. And that is a promise. The name of the Skeleton Masters will be a name to respect."

* * *

The Zan Pack begin their journey to the bustling city of Jubilife. But the travel is not without bickering between Lady Moore and Wes. The group splits up and Zan is forced to spend time with Wes. And there is something fishy going on Jubilife. Will trouble await our well-mannered heroes? Find out on the first chapter of the new arc, the next **Iron Fist: Bound and Bonds**


	6. Gaigax-Jubilife Arc: Bounds and Bonds

What? GM is updating a fic like 8 months after the last update? Yes he is. After rereading the chapters I was really enjoying myself. So I am back in business with Iron Fist.

And to anyone that hasn't read this yet, there have only been 6 chapters and they aren't super long. I would totally love for anyone to catch up.I already have up to 9 written now to show that I am interested in this again.

* * *

**Gaigax: Jubilife Arc**

**Chapter 6: Bounds and Bonds**

Wes stood behind his father in front of Clive's mansion. A wave of people of various sizes and ages were approaching. They all had smiles on their faces and Clive had the biggest smirk of them all. The crowd started to jump and cheer. They chanted the name 'Clive' over and over again. Clive didn't even both to turn back to look at his son. Suddenly the whole crowd was right in Clive's face and Wes was absolutely tiny.

"Hey Clive, congratulations on being so awesome, and strong, and awesome" complimented someone from the front of the crowd.

"Hey where is your son?" asked another member from the crowd, this time a female. "Just kidding I don't care, who needs him when we have you." Then the female and Clive let out a hearty laugh and the rest of the crowd joined in. This laugh made Wes shrink more and more until he was nothing.

The blonde male awoke from nightmare with one eye barely open. Immense irritation was in that eye though. He was leaning against a tree with his arms crossed. Zan and his pokemon were sitting a few feet away, leaning their backs against on large tree. Zan and Boris were eating apples, taking bites at exactly the same time and showing the same face of satisfaction. Nala and Augment nibbled on berries. When Wes opened his other eye Nala noticed. She nudged Zan's arm. He looked at her confused which she pointed towards Wes with a nod.

"Oh hey you're awake" Zan greeted with a smile. "You must've been really tired because you started nodding off on our walk. Then you just leaned up against a tree and crashed. Lady Impatientpants when ahead though. I stayed back so you didn't feel like everyone abandoned you when you woke. Are you ready to continue fo.." Wes was already walking past Zan before the brunette finished his sentence. "Alright then you are ready to go, thanks for telling me that, great communication guys" Zan mumbled to himself while rolling his eyes. Nala got a kick out the joke. "Alright Boris, you need more rest still." The pokemon was pressed against Boris who disappeared before he could try to argue with Zan.

"Sorry for falling asleep, I just, had a lot on my mind" explained Wes looking down in embarrassment.

"That is alright, anything you want to talk about?" asked Zan intrigued.

"No" he instantly and sternly replied. Zan jogged lightly so he could walk beside Wes. Augment and Nala matched their trainers pace.

"Talking about your problems helps lift them away."

"I don't have problems!" Wes snapped. Augment whistled as Zan and Nala's eyes widened in surprise.

"Says the man whose mind is so lost that he fell asleep mid walk" Zan whispered but loud enough that Wes could hear it and he did. The blonde just grunted in response.

"So anyway, what is the plan once we get into Jubilife?" Wes stopped trying to keep ahead of Zan and let the boy match pace.

"Make sure you and Lady Moore stay apart. Seriously your sleeping wasn't so bad because it separated you too. Do you remember how much bickering you guys were doing on the walk. Granted it was mostly her but you fought back. You two are like two dragons using Outrage on each other. But besides that, no I don't have any plans. Zan flies on a whim." Zan tapped his palms against his chest before spreading his arms out like wings. Augment flew over next to Zan with his wings extended.

"On a whimmm" he echoed.

"You know, except the plan to fight the Jubilife Master and continue onward to Sunnyshore" chimed in Nala. Augment and Zan looked defeated but glanced at each other and smiled again.

"On a whimm" they whispered to each other.

"Hmph alright, well you're going to have to wait for Sky to return from Canalave. Which might not be such a good thing. Jubilife is a mess." Zan pondered Wes' words with a finger pressed against his chin as they continued onwards.

The young Sky was walking back towards the exit of Canalave with her Golbat guiding the way. She seemed very content with herself, though she was not smiling. A light breeze passed through, picking up Sky's hair.

"Don't think you are better than me" barked the familiar voice of Clive Bartrin when the breeze passed. He was standing right in front of the tunnel that lead out of Canalave. He was not alone though, his two butlers were still at his side with their golden lined suits. Sky scoffed at this statement with a smirk. Golbat seemed to be laughing as well.

"I thought it was pretty clear that I won that fight. We can go again if you want" she replied stretching her arms.

"I didn't mean in terms of power. You are stronger than me. But you represent Jubilife City, the scum of Sinnoh. I don't know how you can sleep at night, being the Skeleton Master of that city. I just wanted to let you know, whenever you feel good of yourself, whenever you think you are better than me. Remember what you represent. The values and morals that your city represents. Jubilife, is the reason that you are not better than me, child" Clive sharply insulted. With his butler's in tow, he walked forward to pass Sky. Before he could pass though she held out her arm to grab his collar. Though she put her arm out too early, she got Clive to halt momentarily. He was glaring at her hand in disgust. Though he had been glaring at her in disgust the entire time. Sky stayed silent for a moment. Her arm then relaxed and fell back to her side.

"You know what, never mind, I don't have anything to say to you. A lazy man in the perfect city of Canalave has no idea what he is talking about. He doesn't know what it means to fight for a city, to truly struggle. Go back to your high horse mansion, that is the only place you belong" Sky hissed. "Come on Golbez, let's leave."

"Enjoy rotten town" Clive whispered, walking away as well. Sky was clearly unhappy now, stomping with every step.

"Jubilife, down but not out."

"So Mister Wes, if we are going to be traveling partners, it would be nice to know your abilities a little more. What pokemon do you have?" curiously questioned Zan as the two continued their trek.

"None" Wes quickly responded. Zan looked at Wes, waiting for more conversation. No more words left the blondes mouth.

"Did you understand the question right? You used pokemon moves in our battle, so you clearly have pokemon" said the confused brunette. Nala seemed intrigued as well and Augment flew around aimlessly like nothing important was going on.

"Yeah I understood the question, I am not a dumbass. I don't own any pokemon" Wes barked. Zan waited again for an explanation but again Wes was done with his words.

"Then uh, how did you learn the moves you have?" Zan asked quietly.

"I learned them from my father's pokemon. Are you done asking questions now? You're like an invasive girlfriend."

"Hey now, if you would actually explain things like a regular human I wouldn't have to ask questions" snapped Zan.

"I thought you didn't like fighting within the group."

"I don't, but you were pissing me off."

"Well, if you're pissed off now, just wait a few more minutes. It is going to be a lot worse. We are here, welcome to Jubilife." A large metal gate loomed in front of the duo.

* * *

What makes Jubilife city so bad? Lady Moore has already entered the city, as she encountered some difficulties on her own? Zan is also stuck with the task of finding out about the pokemon battle underground scene to get his pokemon another battle. But he has no idea where to look. A mysterious man named Grave looms over the city, but he might not be the only shady one in Jubilife. All on the next **Iron Fist: The Grand City Jubilife.**


	7. Gaigax-Jubilife Arc: The Grand City

**Gaigax: Jubilife Arc**

**Chapter 7: The Grand City Jubilife**

The city of Jubilife was quite large in comparison to the small port city of Canalave. Not only was there more of everything, but it was all bigger. Multiple buildings had a couple of stories. Even some that towered into the sky. Besides these buildings the sky was blank. No cloud in sight nor any pokemon. Just a lot of buildings as far as the eye could see. There were a lot of buildings with a navy, square G logo plastered on them. Most of these buildings looked like energy plants but there was not any waste coming from them. The people were as plentiful as the buildings and looked just as grey. For a bustling metropolis, it had a rather miserable and quiet feel to it. The loudest noise was coming from near the pokecenter which was much fancier and shiny than the one in Canalave. The source of the noise was the loud, ruthless shouts coming from a blue haired woman. The ones at the receiving end of the shouting were a brunette and a blonde male. A Starly and an Espeon were among the mix as well.

"You guys move way to slow! I could've been halfway across Sinnoh by now"gripped the lovely Lady Moore. Zan held his hand straight out in the stop motion.

"No way, that's impossible" he commented. His comment didn't even receive her glare of death though. All of the woman's angry chi was being focused on Wes who hadn't even said anything yet.

"It is all your fault, Mr. I can't stay awake, get your act together. We can't afford to waste valuable time because of your poor sleeping habits" she blamed, fingers pointed. Wes's head shot up and his grin tightened up.

"We don't have move at your pace. I'm not here for you, I'm here for the dumb fire guy over there. We move at his pace, and moved at my pace. So eat it" Wes retorted. Zan stood there lifeless, just letting it happen. Upon seeing this, Augment fluttered down to Nala and landed roughly on her head.

"Why isn't Zan doing anything?" questioned the bird. Though his loud obnoxious voice could not be heard over the bickering by anyone besides Nala.

"He is drained from all the fighting, he has tried to stop them before it just doesn't work. She has yelled at Wes for being late like five times now. They are too involved in their bickering to even realize they are just repeating practically the same conversation over and over again" explained the brilliant psychic type. Her explanation didn't get heard all the way because the flying type had taken off halfway through to fly around aimlessly. The female's purple eye lids squinted over her brilliant, green eyes.

Lady Moore broke the repetitive cycle of arguing as she flipped a silver key at Zan. His reflexes kicked in and he went to catch it but he was too slow and was pegged right in the forehead. Zan stumbled back in a daze, his eyes replaced with spirals.

"That is your key to our room. It's cheaper to share a room just, don't try anything or I'll break your skull. The little Bartrin Prince can just go sleep in his mansion. Or he can find a dumpster to live in, he would fit in there. I have things to do now, we leave tomorrow morning early." Lady Moore swiftly spun on the back of her right heel spreading her hair out like a wave.

"I'm sure you can just get in with me and sleep on the floor" Zan mentioned to Wes, picking up the silver off the dull ground.

"I don't need it, I don't need to sleep tonight. Good ridden she is gone, I have things to do too." Just like that Wes spun around and took off in the opposite direction. His spin was a lot less grateful than Lady's. Zan was left twiddling his thumbs alone with his pokemon.

"Funny how things work out, show up with two comrades and yet we are alone." Zan put on a fake smile and let out a more fake laugh.

"Yeah sure, funny. Zan your companions suck and they are bringing you down. Sometimes you just have to spot a sinking ship while it is still afloat. Anyway I don't like this place, put me in my ball" Nala requested. Zan sighed and his gloomy look returned, more intense than before. His psychic type was returned, leaving the male with just his obnoxious bird. "Well then. Wes and Lady have both warned me about this place and Nala doesn't like it either. But, I don't get what is so wrong with it. What do you say Augment, why don't we go around and see what all the hype is about?" Augment circled around Zan's head a few times playfully before coming to a rough halt on his shoulder, bumping into the human's head as he tried to stop.

"Do we really even need to explore. Can you not feel that?" Zan's head and ears perked up as he darted his head around, trying to pick up the 'signal' that Augment was feeling. Even after some deep breaths to relax and focus, Zan couldn't feel anything abnormal.

"I'm not getting anything, what feeling are you talking about?"

"The feeling of, uneasiness, of terror. I'm not sure but it is unpleasant, kind of like your cooking." The brunette gave his pokemon a solid tap with the side of his head.

"Hmm, maybe it's a pokemon thing?"

"I guess."

"Well now I am even more curious to find out what is going on. Also now that we are alone, we need to find out about the pokemon battling scene that goes on here. Maybe we can get two birds with one stone, let's go!"

About two hours later the two boys collapsed on a park bench in disappointment. They both sighed as Zan stretched his arms. The arms quickly dropped back to the ground without a drop of energy left. Zan was not tired or exhausted, but defeated.

"The people here suck. They won't talk about a single thing" complained Zan. Augment nodded along before flying off of Zan's right shoulder and moving to his left.

"You know why they wouldn't speak about anything containing the cities gloom or the lack of wild pokemon right?" replied Augment. Zan's posture tightened up as his aura got more serious.

"Fear."

"…oh, I thought it was just because they are sucky people" chimed in the bird. His answer was humorous but he wasn't joking. Zan's expression still did not lighten, it was very rare to see him like this when battle was not concerned. The current Zan was even more serious than when confronting a battle.

"Once you have experienced fear you can read it off of others like a book" explained the brunette. "Now then I want to find the source of this fear."

"And how will we do that when no one will talk about it genius?" questioned the faithful bird pokemon.

"The fear is likely stemmed off something or someone. We just have to find the place that everyone is avoiding and our target should be in there. Now what do I plan to do once we find this source of fear? I have no idea." The bird and human quickly look towards each other at the same time.

"On a whim" they chanted simultaneously right before Zan rose to his feet re-energized.

* * *

The scenery changed to a rather lush looking room. The carpet was a rich red color and the walls were a lighter but brighter red. Trophies stemmed off all the shelves all across the room. The room itself was rather gigantic. It had to fill a large desk complete with a computer, as well as a plasma screen television, a pool table and an assortment of couches. This was certainly not a poor man's apartment. The scenery outside of the several windows was a rather small Jubilife city. That was because this room was the highest place in the entire city. A large G sign hung below the south facing window. The room was not empty, a younger man embraced with silk robes was slung over the pool table. He was just facing himself, playing for both sides of the billards game. His medium length hair was back in a ponytail. It didn't look raggedy like most long hair for men, instead it made him come across as sophisticated and posed. It helped he had that rather rich, business man voice. Which fit him since that's exactly what he was. This man was the chairman of the G, the most prominent business in Sinnoh. His name was Charles Gaigax. Whenever he wasn't shooting a pool ball there was the sound typing on a keyboard. That was due to the female character placed at the room's large, wooden desk. It was an old school desk, which was obvious because it was made out of wood. Most desks were now being constructed from plastic. The female behind the desk had pale skin which was brought up by her overflowing white hair that had been combed backwards. The backwards comb brought out the black streaks marked in the hair. Her dark blue eyes dialed in and focused on the information on the screen.

"Prince the reports have been confirmed that Lady Moore has returned to this city" reported the white haired gal with a worried tone. But the man just simply snorted in reply.

"My dearest Vraska, we know Lady came through here before going to Canalave. It should be no surprise that she came back this way" the robed male replied. Those words weren't enough to sooth the assistant.

"She was already caught snooping around some of our factories. All it takes is one big figure to show up and make Sky feel like she can defeat us, then there will be war. Clive Barten's son has showed up as well. We have to watch out for the big movers." A repetitive laughter came from the pool table. The robed man was clearly enjoying himself after that last comment.

"That no good boy is not a big mover. Even his father has amounted to nothing really. Lady Moore is just nosy. But she is impatient, once she can't find anything she will move on out of this city, which will be by early tomorrow I bet. And besides if anyone gives us trouble we have ways to dispatch them. Worrying is bad for your beautiful complexion. Now come over here, the only better billards opponent than myself is you." The woman let out a deep sigh as she let her fingers run through her hair. Regrettably Vraska stood to her feet. This revealed the woman had a on a tan blouse tucked into a tight, black skirt. She was dressed professionally unlike her boss. He was still her boss though so she approached him to satisfy his order. And besides he was right, she was the best pool opponent for him.

* * *

Night had long set in Jubilife now. It was two in the morning and the city was empty. The only thing lingering about besides the buildings was a rough cloud of smoke. The smoke was not linked to an explosion or a fire, but it was linked to one of the plentiful power plant-esque buildings in the city. The smoke was simply due to the building's heating lines being cut. As this was happening a force was exciting the building, completely hidden in a cloak. The word Grave had been ingrained in the concrete in front of the building.


	8. Gaigax-Jubilife Arc: Hunter vs Hunted

**Gaigax: Jubilife Arc**  
**Chapter 8: The Hunter vs The Hunted**

Zan awoke the pain of a sharp foot in his stomach. He wasn't in a very deep slumber so the kick quickly got him awake. There had only been two nights with this girl and Zan was already getting used to her rude awakenings. He didn't snap at her this time though because he wanted to be awake. The boy did not sleep very well that night, he found it hard to sleep. It probably didn't help that he really did sleep on the floor with his backpack as a pillow. His sleeping problems stemmed from more than poor sleeping conditions though. The boy had got to his feet so quickly that Moore wasn't even able to bark at him to hurry up. She just kept her chin up high and exited out of the small, white hotel room. Zan opened his mouth to say something as she left but he didn't have the energy to form the words. The boy still did just wake up, he needed to get energy back first. Zan jumped around while putting on his clothes to get his body and mind awake. The brunette boy was not ready to leave this city yet unlike his female counterpart. That is what he wanted to argue with her about as she left the room. He would get another chance though since she was likely waiting in the lobby. Zan still didn't find anything out about the underground pokemon scene. On top of that he hadn't fought the Skeleton Clash Master here yet, since she was likely in Canalave still. Zan was not going to blow through every city when he hadn't completed any of his goals there yet. He was curious why Lady Moore wanted to blow through every city in a day anyway, where did she want to go in such a hurry? The answers would not be found standing in the hotel though. Now that the boy was dressed he slung his back over his shoulder and headed out of the rom. His pokemon weren't with him at the moment, they preferred to sleep in their balls than on the floor.

The boy trampled down the white, clean steps that lead into the pokecenter lobby. His two companions were waiting there for him. To Zan's surprise they actually were not bickering, though the two were exchanging fierce glances. Neither Zan or Moore had seen Wes since they parted ways yesterday. He did say he didn't need to sleep after all. Though Zan was a bit worried since Wes had fallen asleep walking yesterday. How well could he stay awake today if he hadn't slept at all. That worry was soon the least of Zan's problems as the pokecenter doors slide open. Before Zan could reach his friends Lady Moore was surrounded by men in tan uniforms. The uniforms had black pads over the shoulders, stomach and knees. All of their hands had little silver plates sparked from electricity once in a while. These uniforms were combat suits. The assumed leader of these men who walked behind them was the white haired Vraska. Lady Moore clinched her teeth and tightened her fist. She was circled by a dozen men. Wes moved towards Zan who was rushing to help. The blonde was still watching the scene with interest. He placed his hand on Zan's chest to stop the brunette from moving forward.

"Don't act offensively unless you have to. Those dozen men would prove a challenge even to the three of us together" warned Wes in a whisper. Zan took his advice and just watched the scene. Since even though it didn't look good the men hadn't done anything to warrant saving Lady Moore yet.

"Lady Moore, you have defiled property of the Gaigax Corporation. You would be under arrest if there was a police force. But since that is Gaigax property you destroyed, Gaigax will be detaining you. You will pay for your crimes" announced Vraska who was royally pissed off.

"I have no idea what you're talking about but like hell I am going anywhere with the scum of the earth. Come and get me" challenged Lady Moore. She tapped her two fists together. An icy blue air began to emit from her but she didn't make any offensive movements. Lady Moore really wasn't for talking which worked out since Vraska wasn't for listening. The white haired lady just snapped her fingers and one of her men moved in with a punch for Moore's stomach. His fist lit up even more with electricity. The electric fist just came in contact with ice though as it created a whole right through Moore's stomach. When he did that Moore's entire body was made out of ice. Her shadow began to wiggle and pull away from her body. This showed scurried right out of the PokeCenter.

"Shall we chase her mam?" asked one of the men to Vraska. She shook her head no. The woman was upset but she did not look defeated.

"No do not. You guys aren't trained in following a shadow sneak nor combating it. Just split up and patrol the city, call in if you find any sign of her. She can't escape anyway, the hunters have blocked all of the exits" informed Vraska. She then signaled to her men to move out as she did the same. Wes and Zan just looked at each other completely clueless.

"Well what should we do? Whether she was guilty or innocent she would've ran away just the same. The girl is far too impatient" commented Zan who was slightly confused. By Wes's face one could tell he didn't have any ideas on the right course of action either.

"Well she probably headed for the east exit. The lady said there was guards there. We can't chase after her since they will lump us with her and we will be in trouble too. I don't think you have Shadow Sneak to maneuver around easily, I do not. I think we just need to make her wait. I have things to do today anyway. Let's say we just meet back up at the eastern exit at sundown?" spoke Wes softly since all of the uniformed men hadn't exited the building yet.

"I wasn't ready to leave yet anyway, I'm not going to cut my plans short because of her anyway. Before we split up though, what is with this town? My investigations got me know where yesterday." Wes looked both ways before returning to face Zan and answer.

"Honestly I don't know the answer. But it has to do with Gaigax. They supply to the entire city as well as supply all of the power for the cable in the entire land of Sinnoh. It's gloomsville here though. They refuse to expand their business to any other city, despite being super useful here in Jubilife. Charles Gaigax has bought out every business here in Jubilife and he powers the cable so the news relies on him as well. He has control of the airwaves and has instilled the people with fear. You only do that when you have something to hide."

"I did notice the civilians were avoiding all of the buildings with the G symbol on them. Sounds like someone finally lashed out though. Whatever is going on I don't like it." Zan had a grin of determination with that last line.

"No one likes it doofus. But Gaigax has covered their tracks too well. There is nothing that can be done or else someone would've taken action already. I will see you back at sundown. Don't do anything stupid like that idiot woman."

"I should say the same to you, you're on the reckless side as well. …all three of us are rather reckless" whispering that final line to himself.

* * *

Hundreds of shadows moved around during the busy morning in the city. There was one particular shadow that moved on its own though. Occasionally the shadow were dart behind a dumpster in an alley. A female head would poke up for a gasp of air. Lady Moore hated using Shadow Sneak because it felt dirty but it was effective. Her target exit was very close though. When in shadow sneak mode you could sense your entire surroundings, you just couldn't see exactly what everything was. As she approached the exit there was only the presence of one human left. The woman paid no attention this, she was too excited to finally be able to get out of shadow sneak. Being in Shadow Sneak mode felt a lot like swimming underground. A hand shot down at the swimming Moore like a spear. Longer fingers wrapped around her neck like a net. The woman's skinny body was pulled right out of her shadow and she just laid there limp. Shock had infected Lady Moore, she had never been hit in Shadow Sneak before. The man that grabbed her took his second had that was coating in a shadowy gleam and slammed it in Lady Moore's stomach. He then tossed her body away like it was weightless. The man capable for these actions was actually rather handsome. The man was dressed head to toe in a well maintained brown suit. A matching cowboy hat sat on top of his thin blonde hair. He stood up straight and gave off a professional sort of air. He was the strongest of Gaigax's Security Guards, the hunter, Haven Olsteed.

"Good afternoon darling, I'm sorry but the road ahead is blocked" taunted the cowboy. The tips of a skeleton clash extended out of his sleeves. A single thread went up his next and stopped next to his mouth.

"Oh look it's the heroes, the guardians of Gaigax. You guys are more annoying than my companions. Like hell you're going to stop me" informed a fierce Moore, rising to her feet. Ice began to chunk up in her hands and shadows began to swirl in Haven's right hand.

* * *

"Oi, you're in my way" shouted the young Sky. She had just returned to the city but the gate between Canalave and Jubilife was being blocked by a man. Even though he wasn't facing her whenever Golbat lead her to maneuver around him the guy side walked to block the girl. This man was rather abnormal looking. He wasn't wearing shoes but he wearing loose black pants, which was hardly a common combination. His loose t-shirt was just normal cotton but the left arm had no sleeve. His right arm was full sleeved even down the fingers. The white sleeve had intricate red patterns on it. The patterns looked like the ancient pokemon language. Super short black hair along with dull brown eyes finished off his appearance. He also seemed to have a rather large nose. Sky's trek back to Jubilife took a while because she wanted to pick flowers on the way back and enjoy a night of camping alone.

"That I am Miss Sky" he replied in a quiet tone. "There is a criminal loose in the city. We must keep on of the exits blocked." His back remained facing her the whole time.

"Well then genius, stop moving. I will pass you and the exit will remain blocked. Everyone is happy" she informed with her sassy tone. The woman then took another step forward to which the man blocked her yet again.

"We must keep an eye on everyone that can fly. We are blocking the exits but with fly every direction is an exit. We cannot risk you interfering now Lady Sky. And please, disperse your Zap Cannon." The man was completely correct, Sky had her wrists pressed together and a ball of electricity was forming from her palms. The woman frowned and split her arms apart. His ability to sense presence was pretty amazing, it was similar to her own. Living in Jubilife she knew this man as Mort another one of Gaigax security guards. The security guard group was known as The Hunters but usually only Haven was actually referred to as a Hunter. Even though she dispersed her Zap Canon, the girl's hands still had an electric gleam to them. Her hands came back together with a loud clap.

"Electronic Sonic Boom!" she announced. The sound of her words was covered up by the sound of the attack though. It was screeching loud and it caused Mort to cover up his ears with his hands. Still the sound was too powerful for his ears and he dropped to a knee cringing. The electricity from zap canon helped build up the power for the attack. With a flash of Golbat wings Sky glided right over the guard. She simply turned back and stuck out her tongue to tease the man. Mort did not make any sort of movements or expressions since he was still in pain. Surprisingly though he did not seem too bothered by this turn of events.

"I apologize but the wild one Sky has entered our territory. She is not an easy one to keep contained" he whispered into a microphone clip on his shirt. He could've tried to fight her to keep her out but that would only have created an opportunity for the criminal to slip by.

"We expected as much, we will send some men to keep an eye on her, just keep your section guarded" replied Vraska, the sound emitted out of the microphone that Mort spoke in to.

* * *

In the distance a couple tan suit men were rushing towards the exhausted Lady Moore. She was still at the east exit with Haven. The cowboy was breathing heavy too but he was in much better shape than the girl. She was just beginning to get cuts on her arms. Lady knew very well of the men coming behind her and it gave her face a sour look.

"I would still win, don't you think I wouldn't. But those variable coming from behind me would make my win difficult. Especially if that demon would show up. Peace out" spoke a frustrated Moore. Haven grinned at her speech and flexed his right arm.

"The hunter doesn't let his prey escape" Haven informed, sending his fist forward. Lady Moore began to dissipate into the shadows as a shadow fist extended from Haven's hand, giving him reach to latch on to Moore's shoulder. Moore had only got her legs in the shadows and the shadowy arm was pulling them back out. The woman did not seem stressed and she didn't even use her ice clone. Instead she her frosty blue hand and laid it on top of Haven's hand. Instantly the hunters peach skin began to turn a pale blue.

"Sheer Cold will make you lose that hand" she informed with a devilish, excitable tone. She sank back in the shadows yet again. With sheer cold she could not wrap her hand around his thus he could pull away easily if he wanted to. Over the course of the fight Moore noticed that Haven only used one hand which is why she pulled out this escape strategy. If he could only fight with that arm he would certainly pull back. The man had relied on hand techniques during their fight, so unless he has strong leg techniques that he just didn't show, he needed that hand. Haven did not remove his hand right away though, hesitation was written all over his face. But the importance of that hand was just too much and the hunter pulled away from his pray. But he was quite frustrated. Color hadn't shown any sign of quickly returning to his hand. At least Moore was stuck in the city too. And she was too exhausted to try to fight one of the other guards at the other exits. Haven was sure that he would get his prey back.

* * *

The exits were not the only place were events had happened. One of the power plants near the south of the city was particularly quiet. There were not any tan suits around even though they were heavily populating the city right now. A darkly cloaked figure darted suspiciously out of an alleyway. The figure seemed to be limping a bit. Behind the grey building laying along the smooth concrete sure enough was a pile of tan suited Gaigax workers. There were just three men there. Two of the were passed out leaning along the wall. But the third man was placed on his stomach. The word Grave was cut on the man's uniform.

* * *

The hunter's hunt and Grave's mischief will be put greatly on hold next chapter. Zan will take center stage again as he prepares to fight his first Skeleton Clash Master. After barely defeating Wes who will he compete with Sky who destroyed Wes' father in battle. But Zan is still completely confident going into the fight. The sizzling and shocking battle takes over on the next **Iron Fist: Momentum**


	9. Gaigax-Jubilife Arc: Momentum

I know this chapter was really long but I just didn't want to split it up in the middle of the fight. Some chapters in stories do go longer than others so this is one of my outliers.

* * *

**Gaigax: Jubilife Arc**  
**Chapter 9: Momentum**

Zan strolled through the flat streets of Jubilife with his pokemon at his side. Just like when he explored the city with Augment yesterday he got weird looks from passing citizens. It was the tan uniformed man that gave Zan even weirder look though. They were not out yesterday at all.

"Oi Zan, they are going to arrest you, you criminal jerk" whispered Boris. The words initiated a smack on the back of his orange head.

"I thought so too because of affiliation but they don't seem to have any interest in me. It's you three who have their attention" mentioned the brunette. Nala looked uneasy due to this fact.

"Let's just hurry up and get the Master's house" ordered Nala. It was the attention that was making her uneasy. That was also partially the reason Zan didn't know any of her moves yet. The attention towards her required by him to learn made the girl uncomfortable.

"Yeah working on it. You can return to your ball if the attention gets too overwhelming" replied Zan who had a map of the city in his face. There was no Jubilife gym for Sky to take over as her headquarters here. And the big buildings such as the GTS and tv station were owned by Gaigax. So Sky had to settle for a house. Luckily for Sky she got a house on the south side of Jubilife where all of the Gaigax buildings were on the north half. Nala sensed a sudden presence and turned around but there was no one behind them. Suddenly a figure rose from the ground heaving heavily.

"Finally I found you" gasped Lady Moore. Zan looked shocked, he hastily grabbed Moore's shoulder and proceeded to drag her into an alleyway right near the group. "Relax idiot, there aren't any Gaigax workers that go down south." She collapsed down to the ground and struggled to catch her breath. The fight with Haven wore her out enough and then to having to constantly use a pokemon move for a good amount of time, that took everything she had.

"There are actually, I've seen a few. They are everywhere looking for you" informed Zan who seemed worried.

"Shit, even here. The guardians at the exits are tough, they are Gaigax's hunters. I hate to say this but go fetch the Bartrin scum. The three of us can rush the guardian at the east exit and get on out of here" she ordered. Immediately Lady Moore attempted to rise back to her feet. She couldn't even get her knees straightened before falling back down on her behind. Zan's pokemon just watched this event quietly, they are held back jokes about her current state for fear of their lives.

"And then what? Be chased for the rest of our adventure? This group is serious about getting you, whatever you did or they think you did, they are pissed. I'm sorry but I am not going to be on the run just to risk my neck for you." Lady Moore actually looked sad for a moment, the feeling of abandonment hit. "But I will not leave you. I am going to clear your name, I promise you. I just, have other things to do in this city first. Wes and I are going to help you but you are at our mercy now, you move at our pace. If you don't like it, then you can go do battle with that guard again. It doesn't look like that went so well the first time. I know you hate it, but rest up. Don't do anything, put some faith in my hands. We are acquaintances after all." Moore was still not happy with that answer. The injured woman just let out a sigh. If she could wait through Clive Bartrin's tour than she could probably wait until her comrades were free to help her. She had a drive to try to force them but those boys were as stubborn as she was.

"Fine whatever, I'll rest up here. How long will you guys be, a couple hours?" wondered Moore. Zan laughed it off as he removed his orange coat.

"It'll be something like that. Here rest up." Zan tossed the jacket at her so she at least had something to lay on. "Let's roll out guys." As they left the alleyway Zan was cracking his neck and Boris was cracking his knuckles; they had a battle to win.

About twenty miniutes later Zan stuffed the map in the back of his backpack when he located the target house. He treated the map roughly knowing he wouldn't need its services again. On the other side of Zan was a young lady walking towards the same house. A Golbat led her along by a red leash towards the grey house. The house was a simple building, only one story tall. A white wooden sign stood outside of the building with the words Skeleton Clash Master Sky Salone painted in red. The words Sky Salone were below the rest of the message. Sky paid no mind to Zan as she reached the house a few paces before him. "Are you here to challenge the master as well?" questioned the excited brunette. This city had dulled his flame but the Skeleton Clash Master's house reignited his passion. His frustrations with this place were currently forgotten because a future of combat flooded his mind. Sky glanced towards the voice as Golbat opened the door with its mouth. The door handle had special slots on it fit for teeth, pressing down on those slots unlocked the door. The orange hair girl gave a cute smile while tilting her head.

"Challenger, I am the Master Sky" she replied with a slight laugh. Sky always got a kick out of no one expecting her to be the master. It was refreshing to laugh since things had been stressful for her lately, even if it was just a small laugh. "I have business to get to but I will still join you for a battle. We will just have to get right to it, follow me." As the group entered the door Sky's butler stood in the front hallway looking disappointed.

"Miss Sky please just knock next time and I will get the door. No need to use that disgusting teeth lock" advised the dark haired man. Sky snapped her fingers which called the purple bat to get closer. The orange haired girl then stroked the pokemon's back gently.

"Aw nothing about Golbez is disgusting. She is super pretty. Right girl?" Golbat smiled and nodded along happily. Zan, Augment and Boris stood watching the event with wide eyes. It was so weird to them seeing Golbat act and treated like a pet instead of like another person. The butler made quite note of their surprise.

"So you know boys, Golbez is actually mute. The ability to talk makes a big difference about how pokemon are portrayed" the butler answered. He wanted to mention how Golbez's muteness helped her and Sky bond but he knew better. The lady did not want challenger's knowing about her disability. The odds were high that a challenger would hold back upon finding out that Sky was blind. While this information was no secret some challengers were completely clueless about the woman they wanted to fight. The butler did not address Nala because the Espeon was too busy being enthralled with the wallpaper of the house. The house was previously owned by an elderly couple who had an interesting taste. They liked antiques. So the wallpaper as well as all of the dressers and desks in the house had a colorful and aged look to them. The butler enjoyed the look of the house so much he made sure to keep everything clean and polished.

"Oi can you get the basement ready for this challenger? And then we have some Gaigax rats to contain" ordered Sky. Her aura was much friendlier than during her meeting with Clive. Her butler bowed before taking off down the hallway. Upon entering the house following the single hallway was the only way to go. The hallway was just wide enough for a person though, not for Golbat wings. Sky tapped gently on the pokeball that was placed around her waist. The Golbat was recalled to its ball with a blinding flash of red light. The orange headed girl planted out her right arm and leaned in towards the nearest wall. Upon making contact that hand slide down the wall before latching on to railing. Black hand rails were placed all around the walls of the house. Zan and his pokemon watched this rather worried. Nala had quickly grasped the situation, the three boys were rather clueless which just left them confused. "Alright follow me Zan." The confusion on Zan and Boris's face turned into shock. While the other pokemon started to follow the girl, Zan and his pig stopped.

"Uh, I never introduced myself. How do you know my name?" he wondered. Instantly Zan thought maybe she was some sort of psychic or mind reader.

"She is a mind reader man, here to kill us!" whispered Boris, who took a step back towards the door.

"I am a Skeleton Clash Master who prides on intelligence. I have spies in all of the neighboring cities, letting me know what challengers will be coming to my door next. You fought with Wes Bartrin did you not? I will let you know you're going to need power than that if you want to beat me. I pride myself on my power as much as I do intelligence" Sky answered with a sweet smile. Her smile contained a slight grin of pride. The answer reassured Zan and he began to move forward with the group. Boris still couldn't comprehend the need for spies but he reluctantly followed his friend. Sky followed the railings which lead the group into a larger room. This room had two gold couches as well as a television. There were also speakers hung up all around the room and connected to a stereo. To the left of this room a kitchen could be seen. The tiles were teal with a blue flowery pattern. None of the colors in the rooms matched but they kept that grandma feel. There seemed to be more rooms over to the right side, past the living room. But Sky did not lead her guests there. Instead they entered an elevator shaft immediately right after leaving the hallway. It wasn't the widest elevator so Zan glanced down and Boris and Nala briefly. The two of them nodded and Zan recalled them into their balls. Augment settled on the boy's shoulder as the two entered. Zan and Sky's shoulders were touching were caused the brunette to blush ever so slightly. She just had really soft skin and he was never very close with woman. His sister and mother were always the two prominent girls in his life.

"This is your first battle against a Skeleton Clash Master isn't it?" Sky questioned.

"Yes it is."

"I'm not going to go easy on you." Her answer caused Zan to smile ear to ear.

"I expect you too, Master."

"Zan will win, he is the strongest human I know" chirped in Augment. The bird's words caused the girl to smile cutely.

"That's flattering but I'm not as strong as my sister."

"She isn't human" Augment replied. The group reached the bottom of the floor as Augment finished his words. As the metal door's slide open a battlefield of rubber was revealed. The basement was a large, flat room that had the walls and floor made up entirely of rubber. The squish of the rubber beneath Zan's feet through him off. The ceiling was a dull grey colored as it was made up of reinforced steel. Golbez, Boris and Nala all came back on the field. The purple bat put the leash on its own foot before proceeding. There was a large section of switches in the right corner that Sky's Butler was fiddling with. Bright lights scattered among the ceiling made the room visible. The sound of an air conditioner could be heard as well, which is why the room was rather cool. Golbez guided Sky to the middle of the room before flying off towards the butler. Augment flew off Zan and stayed with Nala and Boris who were chilling on the elevator side wall. Zan walked after Sky, continuing to flex his neck.

"Are you alright?" questioned the brunette. He had yet to catch on to her blindness but something was clearly wrong.

"I am fine. I am the Skeleton Clash Master for a reason. Are you ready?" she replied. The smile had cleared off her face and only furiocity remained. Zan wasn't giving off the same ferocious aura though; his face was filled with uncertainty.

"Are you sure that's wise Miss?" Nala commented. She knew that sure you could just throw out really wide attacks but you can't dodge if you're blind. Maybe the girl had a great sense of auras and presence but that just wouldn't be enough in a fast paced fight.

"Ah the pokemon knows the truth. And clearly Zan isn't committed to fight me at his fullest. So I will clear your doubts. Yes I am blind but I was blind when I got this job. I was born blind due to a chemical imbalance. My eyes do not work. But imagine my eyes like stopped heart. An electric charge puts the beat back in a stopped heart, and a charge kick starts my eyes to give me sight. I assure you that I fight well even with my condition." A charge golden of electricity surged through the girl's entire body. "Let's go, brunette boy." Zan accepted her answer easily but still fighting a blind girl didn't sit well with him. Even if she could see right now, the detail of being blind stuck in his mind.

"Zan you have to focus! You have to get momentum or you will lose. Remember how your fight went with Wes after he took momentum from you. This girl can fight so focus up and let's get victory!" motivated Boris. "Idiot trainer" he mumbled at the end, in typical Boris fashion. Those were the words needed to eliminate Zan's hesitation. His fists tightened, back straightened up and knees bent. Zan's stance was ready, his mind was ready. He let Sky know with a simple nodding gesture.

"Alright then, let's begin!" she shouted energetically. Sky made the first move by raising her slim arm straight in the air. The hand began to cackle with electricity. "Thunder!" she chanted as a pillar of lighting slammed right down where Zan was standing. The brunette boy wasn't there anymore. Instead he had sped ahead and was now right in Sky's face. She didn't see his speed coming at all and was met with a fire punch right to the face. The attack sent her flying backwards. Usually the girl would pull out her Golbat wings to herself down but the punch was so strong it stunned her. Zan followed up by clapping his hands with a firm push of wind guiding his movements.

"Gust!" Wind was summoned from Zan's hands and it continued to carry Sky back until she met the wall. The impact with the wall again left her a bit rattled. She also did not expect this much fight out of this guy. "Flamethrower!" Zan exclaimed next. The flood of flames shot out from his skeleton and surrounded Sky's body. Since he was in a good position Zan kept the Flamethrower pouring. None of Zan's pokemon looked surprise at this turn of events. But the butler as well as Golbez could just not believe it. They had never seen Sky get dominated so much at the start of a battle before. A flying Sky emerged up from the flames with her golbat wings having been summoned. Zan tilted his neck up slightly and Sky was pounded with the flames yet again. Again was she pressed against the wall. This time the impact wasn't as hard so Sky still had full control over her body. Her wings flapped as much as they could and worked to disperse the flames. While Zan had a solid ranged game, his true power was in his close combat. Thus Sky's flames were able to push his flames back enough to give her room to move. Now that Sky had some room she took the opportunity to close her eyes. Several other winged clones appeared.

"I will close in on you now with my Double Team" she promised. Zan's flames returned and he began to spray the clones one by one. The firepower began to dull down though due to the constant use of it. There were three remaining targets that close in on Zan. They all flew in a line and he responded by straightening out an arm. He swung this arm across his body which shot out a white blade that clipped all three opponents.

"Air Slash doesn't care" taunted Zan. The attack didn't send Sky back but it halted her assault. Zan then charged in on his own while covered in flames. The brunette leapt up in Flame Charge mode and planted both feet in Sky's stomach. Now that attack sent her back yet again. The girl was getting really frustrated being tossed around like a sand bag. The second his feet touched the ground, Zan bolted off again. Flame charge was building up his speed which with his already high speed let him reach her in no time. His movements were way faster than during his last fight. Sky had managed to stop short of hitting the wall this time. She was panting heavily while standing on two shaky feet. Yet again Zan appeared right in front of her and pounded her face with a swinging fire punch.

"I finally got you" she spit out while being plastered against the wall yet again. She had managed to pressed two fingers in his gut and let out a charge beam while he smacked her. Zan certainly felt the attack, it stung badly. Despite it only being a single attack, Boris suddenly looked really worried. "You should not be this strong though, my spies certainly didn't report this strength. What is your secret? Were you just holding back?" Sky questioned between exhausted breaths. She was leaning back against the wall to hold herself up.

"Let's make a wager. If you win I will tell you the secret to my strength. If I win, you tell me why everyone is afraid of Gaigax!" A large smile formed on the lady's face and her fire returned. No one ever wanted to talk about Gaigax, everyone always wanted to stay away. The fact that this man wanted knowledge was very intriguing to the orange haired girl.

"Alright, it's a deal. Now, Charge Beam!" Sky announced. She remained leaning against the wall and fired off an onslaught of beams from her two fingers. Zan didn't go for a Flamethrower and just tried to evade on his own. He ducked, darted and even bent backwards . Zan couldn't keep up though and got scraped by almost every beam. "You've slowed down, out of stamina already?" Zan actually wasn't panting much but he was clearly slower, even with the boost from Flame Charge. And for every yellow beam that hit, the next one was stronger. But Zan's dodging brought him closer and closer to his target. The charge beams stopped once Zan had entered Sky's personal bubble. He went for a trusty Fire Punch while she went to summon to sparking orbs in each hand. Sky could keep up with Zan now as she jabbed one orb up against his fire punch arm, throwing off the accuracy. The punched just dinged against the wall harmlessly. The second orb was sent into Zan's stomach which sent the man stumbling back in pain. He wasn't stunned as her physical power was not her strong suit. Sky followed her combo by raising another slim arm up in the air. Zan leaned back and the ends of his skeleton flashed orange like they were hot. This action released yet another Flamethrower which connected straight on, but not before Sky finished her own attack. The thunder crashed down on Zan in the form of a yellow pillar. This one he did not move out of the way of. Since defense was not his strong suit the boy was on a knee once the attack cleared.

"Dam, I thought one more attack would finish her off" he muttered to himself. This combo was adding more to Sky's exhaustion but she kept it up. The woman went for her favorite move next and connected her wrists together. A large ball of powerful electricity swirled around in her pale hands. Zan wasn't planning on taking this one now that he got a true taste for her power. He pushed of the ground with his right fist and resumed a standing position. Right as this happened the canon was fired. The brunette pulled his energy together and released a clap of wind. The gust barely slowed down the ferocious attack. He had enough space and energy to try one more technique though. Zan lit both fists on fire this time as he attempted to catch the attack. He timed it well enough that his hands clasped the zap canon from both sides. His palms were infront of the ball enough so it didn't slip through his hands. Electricity swelled through his body as the attack pushed him back. He tried to dig in his legs to slow him down but his legs were not strong and this rubber ground would not let him. Sky was mightily impressed though, even if it was stupid she had never seen someone combat Zap Canon like that. The canon attack just kept pushing him back but the stubborn boy did not let it past his hands. They were numb now due the electricity but he still wouldn't give in. The attack had pushed him back almost completely to the other wall and it was steadily losing speed. The flames in his hands didn't give out either, since they were helping protect his body from the electricity. Sky had the chance to hit him with more attacks but she was too enthralled with watching him. That and she did need a moment to catch her breath. To the small crowd's amazement Zan's action was actually successful. Inches before touching the back wall he came to a halt. The zap canon was still full of electricity too even though it was still. He was really wishing he learned mirror coat from Nala but the boy still had a plan.

"This gift from my sister, I never thought I'd use this move" he said to himself. Sky stepped away from the wall and spread her feet apart, preparing to dodge. Without any sort of animation, the ball of electricity disappeared. Sky's eyes darted around frantically to try to spot it. The attack manifested right at her neck and exploded like it should. She had grown an electric resistance due to training with electric pokemon but the powerful attack still hurt like hell. Zan didn't waste a second charging in now with Flame Charge. He couldn't move his arms so he could not run as fast or properly bend them to let the flames flow. So heat built up in his arm joints but since they were numb from the Zap Canon he didn't feel a thing. Zan pushed his legs as fast as he could because the paralysis was setting in. Normally it would set in by now but he was trying to keep it out with every effort. His eyes were falling shut and there was still a lot of distance to go. Not to mention Sky could've fired a barrage of any of her plenty ranged attacks by now. In her mind the match was hers already. This match has just given her the feeling to finish it personally, with close combat. It just seemed the only way fitting, even with her close combat skills. Electricity sparked and covered her whole body. She then charged forward herself, taking herself in a coat of yellow energy. Zan was able to keep his body up even after his entire left eye had shut and he was leaning towards the right, losing that right foot. The two colorful attacks met on Zan's side of the field. Their heads rammed against each other. Zan was naturally stronger but since the paralysis was robbing his body from him the boy relied on his weight advantage. He leaned in towards Sky, hoping to push her over and just fall on top as his finishing move. But the exhausted girl still had control over her body and an electric knee was planted in Zan's stomach. The paralysis had spread and he couldn't fight back against her pushing him over. The boy laid on his back out of commission. Even if he wasn't paralyzed he was still out of energy. The paralysis was already starting to wear out and it never reached the face anyway.

"My ability is called Momentum" Zan answered. Until then no one was sure if he would get up again. Sky was hunched over with her hands on her knees but still standing. Zan's three pokemon were hit with a look of sadness and disappointment now. While Golbez and the butler looked simply reassured. "I went away to train these past few months but I wasn't just training my body. I was learning ways to tweak and improve my skeleton" he continued with an exhausted breath. "Momentum is an active kill that greatly increases my speed and attack. But such powerful technology has yet to be perfected so it is really fragile. One attack to me will stop Momentum from working, thus the name Momentum."

"Ah, everything makes sense now. That was a fantastic battle, I want to thank you, by giving you your part of the deal as well" Sky complemented, while planting her body on the ground in a seated formation. "Now let's talk, about Gaigax."


	10. Gaigax-Jubilife Arc: Gaigax and Gaigax

**Gaigax: Jubilife Arc**  
**Chapter 10: Gaigax and Gaigax**

A constant knocking sound filled Gaigax's office room. It was the sound of Charles casually playing pool. The hectic scene outside of his building did not seem to bother him. He wasn't even thinking about the chase for the criminal. He was casually whistling to himself while enjoying the peace of the early afternoon.

"Prince, I am entering" announced Vraska from outside the large oak door. The doors majestically swung open without a sound. Charles's back was facing his assistant as she entered. The woman moved with great haste. Her hair was a frizzled mess. She normally wasn't a very cute girl but right now she was more unflattering than usual.

"So what is the situation on our terrible, violent criminal?" asked Charles with a slightly sarcastic tone. Vraska wanted to glare at him for that response but she took a deep breath and kept any mean responses to herself.

"Prince, I know you don't agree with the measures taken but please I assure you they are necessary. This Grave's action may have been minor but we have to make an example of her. We can't allow anyone to take negative actions against us without consequences. If we do nothing we will be seen as weak and then the people will be given hope. That would lead to your companies downfall. You put me in charge of Public Relations and Security so please trust me that I am doing my job right" pleaded Vraska. Charles rose up from his pool stance and placed the butt of his stick on the ground like a cane. He looked into his assistant's eyes and saw pure determination

"You really are passionate, fine then. What is the status?" Charles asked seriously. Vraska looked a little more comfortable now as she straightened up her stance.

"As suspected she encountered Haven on the east exit. But she got away from even him, Lady Moore is very tricky. Haven reported her being quite injured though, she probably can't use shadow sneak much now for a while. We will get her" reported the white haired woman with an official voice. Charles raised an eyebrow skeptically though.

"And you're sure Lady Moore is this Grave?" he questioned unsurely.

"Absolutely" immediately answered Vraska. "She has been snooping around our power plants every time she has passed through this city. It was just a matter of time before she acted." That information did not convince Charles in the slightest. He held out his pale, skinny hand towards her.

"Let me see the video feed of the incident. I let you act completely without my help earlier. But now I feel like caring. Lady Moore is not someone we want to just make an enemy of." Vraska pulled out a grey-blue phone from her back pocket that had a large screen on it. She gently slid this phone into her boss's hand. Right after that Vraska raised her hand to touch the black ear piece that was resting in her right ear. A panicked voice could be heard talking on the other side of it. Vraska nodded along to the man's words. When he had finished her eyes drifted towards Charles's face.

"Three of our guards have been found knocked out and one had the word Grave carved on their uniform. Lady Moore really will not get away with this now" she informed her boss. He seemed too invested in the footage being shown on the phone though. Vraska focused back to the earpiece as another voice was speaking now, a female voice. The radio was connected to all of the security guards, including the hunters. So if one person said something everyone heard it.

"Vraska" shouted this feisty female voice. "Let me go after her now. I am the tracker. I could find her no problem and this whole ordeal would be over with."

"And then who will cover the south exit? We need someone who can stop shadow sneak and the regular guards are not capable of that" explained Vraska.

"You can" the voice answered bluntly. "I know you like being control of everything in the field and leading the siege directly but I can get her Vraska. Take a back seat from leading the charge and let me do what I am good at." Vraska did not reply at first. She stood their debating what to do. The woman did love to be in power, it made her feel complete. But it was true just randomly searching for Lady Moore was not working out.

"Fine" she answered with a sigh. "Start getting a sense of her general direction but do not stray far from your gate, I will be there soon." Vraska again turned her attention back to Charles who had placed the phone on the pool table.

"There was something I forgot to ask. Why don't you have anyone guarding the north exit? You don't think she is bold enough to escape that way?" wondered Charles.

"She would die" Vraska blurted out. "Even Lady Moore would know that, so she will not leave that way."

"Ah I see" he casually replied. "Also, you got the wrong suspect. Grave is a man." Charles Gaigax did not even flinch when he relayed this information. Vraska just halted her movements as well. That was the worst information she had heard all day and it was coming from someone as reliable as her boss.

"Uh, are you sure Prince?" Vraska knew his boss was extremely intelligent but she greatly hoped that he was mistake here. Besides the video was at night so it was pretty grainy. Not much detail could be observed.

"I am positive. I love women, and I've seen Lady Moore's wonderful hips. This grave does not walk with woman hips. And his shoulders are far too broad for a woman. And on top of that the front of the cloak stays pretty close to the chest yet you can't see any sort of bulge where breasts should be. I may not be good with security or public relations but I have a knack for detail. Trust me my dear, this Grave is a boy. And now we have a pissed off Lady Moore. Call down your forces."

* * *

"I hate Gaigax, I really do" spoke Sky. Zan, Nala and Boris were all listening very intently. Augment was just flying around in circles now due to boredom. And the butler had now moved topside since his job was done here. "I imagine you've tried to get information about them around town but no one will talk about it? Well I do not fear them because I've had enough of them." The orange woman paused to take a deep breath. She was still panting from that battle.

"Boooring" yelled Augment. Zan reached his shaky hand for Augment's pokeball but Nala had already taken care of the situation with Yawn. Even Boris was already showing signs of getting bored. His attention span was not very long and Sky's storytelling style dragged.

"Continue please" requested Zan. He himself was still sprawled out on the floor. He didn't have the energy to retain a seated position.

"They blessed the city with a miracle pollution free energy. It was a great gift to this city, but they won't share they secret with other cities. They could expand their company to multiple other cities, gaining more wealth and fame but they won't do it. That was instantly suspicious. The people loved Gaigax at first. Company erupted into fame and took over the whole south half of the city in not much longer than six months. They quickly drove out the existing power company" she continued. Boris was looking at his hands now as he had totally lost interest in the story. Nala was even starting to wish that Sky would speed up. "They had everyone distracted. Wild pokemon around the city began to disappear but the people didn't seem to notice. I notice because I keep taps on everything having to do with Jubilife. This is my city after all. At first I assumed it was just something to do with their power source that was driving the wild pokemon away. I tried to talk to the head of the business, Charles Gaigax. But he was very uncooperative. Just getting a meeting with him took months and then he cut the meeting short in a few minutes. And their security is so tight there is no way to get inside one of the plant buildings without permission." She paused for another breath. Her mouth was pointed towards the ceiling.

"So the people never noticed that the wild pokemon had gone away?" wondered Zan.

"No they did eventually. Just about when we had a wild pokemon population of zero, even in routes around us were dwindling on wild pokemon. When trainer's pokemon began to disappear that is when Gaigax came out with an announcement. They said that their miracle power source had a side effect of chasing away pokemon that they were not aware would happen. But this was after the previous power company had gone completely bankrupt. People had lost their pokemon and even if the city wanted to get rid of Gaigax we would be without power and without a backup plan. What's done is done, we are dependent on them now."

"And you think that they were well aware that this side effect was going to happen, don't you?" wondered Zan again.

"I don't think that side effect even exists. My pokemon are still here and haven't felt anything about being pushed away. They only thing has happened was a masked man tried to take Golbat once. I think Gaigax is stealing pokemon, I just, can't get any proof. And whenever anyone has done any sort of act against Gaigax they were instantly arrested. Thus the fear all across the city. The only one immune to being arrested is me simply because Gaigax doesn't want to attract any members of the league down here. I have still been threatened many times. I am the only one left fighting for this city, and the civilians expect me to be able to make everything instantly ok, but there is nothing I can do." Tears began to drip down the poor girl's face. She quickly buried her face in her arm to hide them. But Zan knew the noise of crying all too well. The boy was now filled with energy as he emerged to his feet. His body was still very sore and exhausted but his mind was fully charged.

"Let's go guys, pick up Augment" Zan stated fiercely. He barely had the energy to walk but the stubborn boy made it work. Both his awake pokemon were dazing off had to take a moment to shift back into the real world.

"Where are you going?" asked a slightly worried Sky. She was able to completely fight off the tears now. But she was worried her speech would cause the boy to do something stupid.

"I have to talk to Gaigax to get an ally of mine pardoned from her crimes. And then I'm going to save your city" he boldly informed. His pokemon got the message now and walked beside him. Boris dragged Augment along by the wing.

"You can't do anything stupid, there are so many reasons why you can't" the orange hair girl pleaded.

"Don't worry, I am just going to talk to them. At first. And then if things don't go well, I will come back healthy and kick their asses" the brunette promised. Despite just having lost his heart was on fire.

* * *

Just what kind of man is Charles Gaigax exactly? The intelligent villain will go head to head with the strong willed hero. Is he really even evil or is he just a misunderstood business man? How will the reckless Zan even handle a man of Charles's intellectual caliber? All on the next **Iron Fist: The Prince and the Pig.**


	11. Gaigax-Jubilife Arc: Pig and The Prince

Gaigax: Jubilife Arc  
Chapter 11: The Prince and The Pig

Zan and his company moved through the city of Jubilife with haste. They were on a mission, Zan was atleast. His pokemon were mostly just tagging along.

"Oi Boris, do me a favor?" requested the determined Zan as they walked. The orange pig didn't reply but just looked to his trainer as a response.

"Learn a kicking move, so you can teach me. If I can kick I can win."

"Only if you teach me Flamethrower, I want to get stronger too now" bargained the pokemon with a smirk.

"Deal" Zan answered while smirking back. The pack continued to wade through the city.

* * *

The sound of knocking yet again filled the room of Charles's office. But this time he was not playing pool. The booming sound was being generated from the very bottom of the tower. An exhausted young boy was pounding his fist into the front door of the Gaigax main building. Despite being several floors up Charles heard the sound loud and clear. It even vibrated the walls of his office. Yesterday when Zan tried to get into this office he just knocked once and then walked away when no one came to the door. But now the boy wasn't giving up, despite the bruising occurring on his fist. All of the Gaigax building required a keycard to get in thus leaving Zan trapped outside.

"Sir, what do you want us to do about the boy" asked a security guard. The guard was not in the office; instead his voice came through an intercom at Charles' desk. The man released a small sigh.

"Get him off the premise" replied Gaigax in an annoyed tone. This used to be a common occurrence a few months ago. Plenty of civilians wanted to talk to Gaigax since the disappearance of pokemon. But Charles Gaigax did not meet with pigs. Sky was the only person outside of his business that he talked to in this city. And he certainly did not leave the haven of his base. There was a secret back door to the tower that three guards snuck out of. They then circular around the male and his companions. The men did not strike but they were in defensive positions. One of the guards was quite taller than the others and he raised his voice.

"Trespasser, you have been ordered to leave, please do so immediately" the man informed with a very practiced speech.

"I will not leave" firmly announced the boy. "I came here to speak to Mr. Gaigax and that is what I will do." Zan's next actions was to slide down to a sitting position. He stared at the metal door in front of him, waiting for it to invite him inside. The leader of the guards was instantly infuriated by this action and his face lit up red. Charles Gaigax continued to watch this scene unfold. He had meant to walk away but this boy was drawing his attention. This determination was too wild, it needed to be tamed.

"If you do not leave we will use force. Scum like you shouldn't be near the glorious Gaigax Tower." Zan did not reply at first. Instead the boy's blue eyes shot right into the eyes of this lead guard. His eyes were fiercely determined and a slight anger shown through. Charles couldn't see this detail from his perch but he was still curious to what was going on below.

"Is he angry" wondered Gaigax back through the intercom.

"Deathly" quietly replied the now afraid lead guard. Zan was determined, upset, with pokemon and a skeleton clash, he was a threat for Gaigax.

"Invite him up. And don't question me, just do it" ordered Gaigax unemotionally.

* * *

Zan awkwardly glanced around the office room he sat in. The boy was never poor but he felt poor being in this office. Charles had taken a seat at his desk which he very rarely sat at. The man raised the height of his chair so he sat slightly taller than his guest. The quality of the office wasn't the only thing making Zan uncomfortable, he was alone. The single rule that Gaigax was sold on to let Zan in was he had to put his pokemon away. They were too much of a risk to damage the buildingand a safety risk to Charles himself. He saw how injured Zan was so the boy was no threat.

"Did your fire burn out already? I know you come here yesterday with no fire you didn't try hard to get in. But then today you were a burning ball of passion. That passion dissipated. What a weak willed boy" Charles teased. He was putting on a fake voice just slightly deeper than his own but it didn't sound fake.

"My passion is still intact" Zan snapped back. "I was just, lost in the beauty of this place. Too ba.."

"Ah yes the beauty of having money, of being in control, it's nice" interrupted Charles smoothly.

"You don't.." Zan started to say.

"You don't have to be so ruggedly good looking" finished Charles. I know but I can't help it, it is a curse." Charles was trying to be intimidating, yet he was still in his bath robe. The way he held himself though, it was like he thought he was wearing his best suit. Zan grunted at the interruption and the comment. This guy was not taking Zan serious at all.

"What I.."

"Your Sinnoh Dialect ends very abruptly. Is that a Sunnyshore accent? I was never a fan of those, they take away the beauty of how well the Sinnoh Language flows." Charles Gaigax ended his line with a smirk, he knew exactly what he was doing. The brunette Zan released another sigh, he was trying not to get caught up in Gaigax's trap.

"Yes my.."

"Your accent says a lot about your intelligence. Marching right into the Lion's Den."

"I wou.."

"You know" Gaigax continued.

"I wouldn't call this place a Lion's Den. It is more of a Spider's Web. Also you're a total dick with your power" insulted Zan. He turned to give a high five to Boris but a frown appeared when the boy remembered his pig wasn't around.

"You tried so hard to get to meet with me just to insult me? What a waste of space you are" Gaigax fired back. Zan was taking the attacks like a champ though, he was not wavering or getting frustrated.

"My goal is not to insult you. But to judge your character. I have a feeling that is the same reason you invited me up here" replied Zan. His words caught Gaigax slightly off guard though the rich man tried to hide it. "Though you don't care more about taming my character after you judge it. Don't you?"

"You th.."

"Furthermore" Zan interrupted. "I've already been able to judge your character. I wanted to see if you were blind to the damage your company is causing or if you just don't care. You should know what conclusion I came to."

"You're right, I don't care. I am giving these people the cheapest electricity in Sinnoh, what more could they want?"

"Pokemon, safety, peace of mind. Fear is not an acceptable price to pay for electricity." Charles stretched his arms into the air before placing them behind his head while leaning back in his comfortable chair. The nobility of Zan was quite entertaining even though it was slightly annoying.

"And what are you going to do about it, oh great white knight?" teased Gaigax yet again.

"Absolutely nothing. You have wealth and power, I am sure you control a large army of soldiers to protect yourself. Even if you are destroyed, the city will suffer without you. I was hoping you could be bargained with but I don't see that happening. You are on the top of this city and that is exactly where you want to be." The brunette boy swiftly rose to his feet. His hands immediately clutched his pokeballs, the loneliness was killing him.

"You may not be so stupid after all. The Reign of Gaigax will continue."

"I may not be the smartest man in the world. But I know people's characters are my forte. Jubilife is a lost cause." Those were the last words Zan had as he led himself out of the room. He continued to grip onto his pokeballs with his right hand. Soon the boy was sitting in the elevator on his way to escape from this devil's tower. "Down but not out."


	12. Gaigax-Jubilife Arc: The Calm Before

**Gaigax: Jubilife Arc**  
**Chapter 12: The Calm Before**

The sun had just passed through the city of Jubilife. The starlight reflected wonderfully with the tall and plentiful buildings. With all of the gloomy civilians in their houses the city could actually be beautiful again. The large G still shined brightly, dissipating some of the cities beauty. An Espeon and a Starly were admiring this beautiful night from the balcony of the pokecenter. The oo'd and aw'd together at the magnificent sight. Zan's room didn't have a balcony but that room wasn't being rented at the moment so the boy and his pokemon snuck onto it. The burning glow of a shooting star filled up the night's sky and caused the pokemon's eyes to open widely.

"One day, I want to be as fast as a shooting star" shouted out Augment. He was surprisingly still perched on the balcony railing. Stars were the one thing that could keep him calm. They just completely hypnotized the little bird.

"Only if you start training your body" Nala giggled. Augment waved his tongue out at Nala briefly before his eyes were dragged back to the stars. Wes, Boris and Zan were next to the duo, alongside the railing. Boris was more interesting in the human's conversation than the star gazing. Nala was capable of listening to the conversation as well as star gazing.

"What does your agenda look like for this city" questioned Zan. Wes had just informed the boy what he had done today, which Wes didn't give a lot of information.

"I need another day" Wes answered followed by a yawn. There were no dark circles under his eyes but he did appear to be pretty drained.

"As do I" Zan commented. He wanted to give Wes details but the blonde wasn't giving Zan any details either. So Zan just didn't feel motivated enough to inform his traveling partner what was going on. Then again it was probably a smart move since Zan himself did not know what was going to happen. Jubilife needed help and he didn't like what Gaigax was doing, but he was just a single man. Wes rose his weary arms into the air and arched his back to stretch.

"Is that all? I will be going now then." Wes walked to the railing and placed both hands firmly on it. He was fully intending to leap off.

"Hold on, I am too curious, what have you been up to since we have arrived?"

"Stuff and things" blurted Wes before returning to his jump.

"I fought Sky and I've been researching the Gaigax Company. I don't like them." Zan obviously hoped that telling the truth might coax Wes in doing the same. It wasn't exactly that he wanted to know everything his ally was doing but the boy was just generally curious what Wes was doing that took all day.

"No one does, welcome to Jubilife. And you're not my buddy, pal. You said earlier we don't have to share everything, we will have our secrets. Now I am out."

"Wait" called out Zan. "Are you sure you don't want to stay in the room? Lady Moore won't be coming back tonight so she won't be able to get mad. Sleep is healthy after all."

"With my agenda, this is the best time to act. Where is that blue devil staying anyway?" wondered Wes who was now completely perched on the railing. Zan's pupils expanded in surprise. Even though he had met with Moore not more than an hour ago he just remembered something important about her. The boy had completely forgot to talk to Gaigax about pardoning her alleged crimes.

* * *

Sky's residence was one of the few buildings in the city still brimming with life. While very quiet the inhabitants were very much awake. Sky sat on her side in her comfortable living room. Golbez was resting upside down on a perch bar set into the ceiling. A new face in the form of a brilliant Manectric rested beside her owner Sky. The electric dog warmed up the bar feet of her companion. Manectric wasn't the only fresh face though. The intimidating Lady Moore was resting her bones in the house as well. The couch was a refreshing feeling for her body since she spent most of the day on the dirty, cold concrete of Jubilife. Still Lady Moore did not feel totally at ease here. Her body was comfortable but tense. People were out to get her yet here she was rooming with someone she didn't trust. Then again there was no one that girl trusted. That stupid boy Zan was the one who recommended that Lady Moore stay with Sky. All it took was to mention that Gaigax wanted Lady captured, and that got Sky to agree. The butler, who really does not take a name, wasn't so trusting of Zan and his friends. Which is why he is sitting in the room with the ladies, despite usually passing out in his bed by now.

"So, Miss Moore, how long have you and Zan been together?" hesitantly questioned the orange haired girl. Zan's wild fighting style and bold statements hadn't left the cute girl's mind all day. Moore had been mostly quiet the entirely night but that event made her burst into laughter.

"Oh man, you're hilarious. I would never date that idiot loser. He is far too simple for my tastes" informed Moore while still chuckling. Sky seemed slightly uncomfortable at the response. Sure she didn't know him that well but he didn't seem like the kind of guy to warrant that response. She knew that Moore was Zan's friend so she assumed that Lady knew the boy well. Sky was completely clueless that the two just met a few days ago.

"Anyway, so what do you two plan to do for the rest of your time here?" Sky didn't look in Moore's general direction the entire conversation. Instead the blind girl let her head hang down low. Lady Moore wasn't looking at Sky either, instead she was just mindlessly staring at a wall.

"Get out of here. Once that lazy bum has finished his activities we will push through the east exit and be in Oreburgh by tomorrow. That boy thinks he can try to talk Gaigax out of wanting me captured. He is so naïve to think Gaigax can be rational or bargained with." Moore kept her confident smirk as she talked, running away from Gaigax was no worry to her. The mention of Gaigax brought a strong frown upon Sky's face. She never did hear back about how Zan's meeting with Charles went. But from Moore's words it sounded like Zan just wanted to talk about Lady Moore, and not about the freedom of the city. But that was nothing new to the orange haired girl, no one really wanted to help, no one cared about Jubilife anymore. They powered the television stations and no one was dying due to Gaigax, that's all that mattered to the outside world.

"Ah I see. Well I hope your stay in Jubilife was a pleasant one. I think I am going to bed now" spoke Sky in a fake cheerful tone. She didn't pay much attention to her word choice which was obviously poor. She just did not care, sadness had overtaken her at the moment.

* * *

There was one last group of active people amongst the city. This group was spread around the entire city, communicating over radio. The Gaigax group was still very much awake and active. The three hunters still were watching the exits and they didn't seem remotely tired. Vraska was scavenging the city alone, looking out for any signs of Grave. While Charles was the only tired one, laying on the silk sheets of his double king sized bed. He was barely keeping consciousness but was awake enough to communicate.

"Oi Vraska, I forgot to ask earlier" mentioned the sleep Charles. "Even though Moore isn't the Grave and so escaping with shadow sneak is no longer a problem, you still want the hunters to post up as guards on the exits?" A relief swept across the Hunter Haven's face since he was wondering the same thing.

"It is a new strategy I am testing, just bear with it Prince. When we catch Grave, we should hang his head outside of one of the Gaigax plants. This type of action can no longer be allowed to happen" Vraska grunted. Haven's face melted into a pale color. The cowboy strongly disagreed with that action but none of them dared to say anything.

"That wouldn't be wise" advised Charles in a sleepy monotone voice. "Murder will instantly bring enemies to our door. The fact we haven't killed anyone makes other groups pass us off as not that troublesome. Your demon side comes out when you get frustrated."

"They will pay though, we hunters will make sure of that" added Haven. The cowboy was the only vocal one in his group. Anastasia was quiet because she was defeated. Even after they found out that Moore wasn't Grave, Anastasia still tried to use her expert skill to track down the culprit. But she didn't have enough to go off and failed. Anastasia Burbank was not supposed to fail. The other member, Mort, just didn't have anything to say.

"If you guys can get them, you haven't exactly proved your worth" Vraska insulted bitterly. Haven dug his nails into his palm out of sudden anger. He was too prideful of a man to just take that. His two fellow hunters didn't seem to react at all though. The cowboy was ready to fight back, he hated the strategy Vraska used today and just her strategies in general. It was the money that kept him in this boring job but the money wasn't enough for him to dismiss his pride. A rage filled speech instantly filled the man's head and he prepared to spit it out.

"Radio silence effective immediately" announced Charles. He was the boss and no one tried to argue it. The noise on the radio completely disappeared. Vraska and Haven just grunted to themselves and then continued their duties. "Now, all other threats have been accounted for and tamed. Once Grave is caught and arrested we can return to our peaceful job of ruling this city, with me as the king" spoke Charles, several minutes later.

"And you are the best leader for this craphole" mentioned Vraska, purposely trying hard to avoid using the word king or prince. The entire group of hunters fell silent now. That didn't bother Charles at all, he knew money was the only thing keeping them tied to the company.

* * *

The masked man that called himself Grave was back to moving around. He found himself scurrying about the south side of Jubilife. His target was another Gaigax power plant, this one was one of the lowest south plants that Gaigax had. It was just before the neighborhood houses started. The vigilante stood on the top of this white building with malicious intent. Yet he was not making any offensive actions against this building. That was because Grave was not alone this time. A barefoot man with equally aggressive intent stood on the small round roof with Grave. They were locked in an intimidating glare though Grave was much more menacing. A dark aura manifested around Grave's hand before he took a large step forward, towards his big nosed opponent, Mort.


End file.
